With the dog days of the NHL offseason now upon us, we’re going to spend the next couple of weeks taking a deeper dive at a number of players on the Bruins’ roster (or on the cusp of a roster spot) who could make a major impact on the club’s hopes of putting together another Cup run.
Here are our previous breakdowns of B’s players this summer:
Part 1: F Danton Heinen
Part 2: F Peter Cehlarik
Part 3: F Charlie Coyle
Part 4: F Anders Bjork
Part 5: F Zach Senyshyn
Part 6: D Urho Vaakanainen
Next up, let’s take a look at one of the key cogs in Boston’s bottom-six in Sean Kuraly:
Player: Sean Kuraly
Age: 26 (turns 27 on January 20)
Position: Center/Wing
Height/Weight: 6-foot-2 / 213 pounds
2018-19 Stats: 71 games played – 8 goals, 21 assists, 13:46 ATOI
SEASON IN REVIEW
It didn’t take very long after inking a new three-year, $3.825-million deal for Sean Kuraly to start fielding questions about his place in the Bruins' lineup.
After a promising first full season in the NHL in which he tallied 14 points and logged major minutes on the PK while operating on the fourth line, Kuraly figured to be one of the leading in-house candidates to fill in the vacancy left by Riley Nash as Boston’s third-line pivot.
“I figured there would be questions, and I’m going to give it my best shot,” Kuraly said of fighting for a promotion out of camp. “I’m preparing like I do every single year to play my best hockey, and I look at it like, that’s the first thing that has to happen. So, I’m going to try to play my best hockey and bring as much as I can to the team, and where I’m put in the lineup or where they put me is going to be based off how I play, and how I play is up to me.
“I just want to do the best I can, and whatever position they put me in, I’ll try and make the best of it and do the absolute best I can. My goal is to help the team as much I can, obviously, like any other player. If that means playing third line, then that’s what that means, and if it means playing fourth line, then that’s where I’ll be. Really, that’s what my outlook is.”
By the time October rolled around and other younger candidates like Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson and Trent Frederic came up short in vying for an NHL roster spot, Kuraly had emerged victorious in the training-camp competition, opening the season as the third-line center alongside wingers in David Backes and Ryan Donato.
It did not last very long, however, with the trio only logging three games and 11 minutes of 5v5 TOI together before Kuraly was once again primarily relegated to a fourth-line role.
And while his place on Boston’s depth chart largely remained the same as the season progressed, Kuraly’s role on the club continued to grow — with the speedy forward becoming the linchpin on a fourth-line corps also featuring Chris Wagner, Noel Acciari and Joakim Nordstrom.
Along with setting a new career-high with eight goals and 21 points over 71 games, Kuraly also averaged 1:18 of shorthanded TOI (including 2:01 during the postseason - tops among B’s forwards) while using his speed and size to generate a “one-man cycle”, as tabbed by Bruce Cassidy.
Kuraly’s ability to both carry the puck up the ice and beat opposing skaters to the biscuit during a forechecking sequence allowed Boston’s fourth line to serve as one of Cassidy’s most trusted groups when it came to matchups — with Kuraly’s crew often earning shifts against top-six forward trios.
Add in a few of the clutch goals that we’ve become used to seeing from Kuraly — including a game-winning strike at the 2019 Winter Classic, a goal in a Game 7 victory over the Maple Leafs and the deciding goal in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final against St. Louis — and the 2018-19 campaign was another major step in the right direction for the dynamic forward.
While more minutes will likely be prescribed for one of Cassidy’s most trusted forwards in the bottom-six in 2019-20, could another crack at the third line also be in the cards for Kuraly? Let’s take a look:
BSJ Analysis
Before we even entertain the thought of Kuraly moving up in the lineup in 2019-20, first we have to see if there’s even room available.
If we’re looking at another shot for Kuraly at 3C, the Bruins would have to make promote
Charlie Coyle
as well, with the veteran forward
on the wing if Boston is unable to find another solution to slot in next to
David Krejci
— or even
Patrice Bergeron
, if Cassidy opts to drop down
David Pastrnak
to the second line.
Of course, Kuraly’s versatility when it comes to being able to play both at the pivot and on the wing could allow him to even slot up to play with, say, a Heinen-Coyle combination if need be. Meanwhile, the addition of another bottom-six pivot like
Par Lindholm
could also open the opportunity for Kuraly to slot up— given the Swedish center’s ability to serve as a reliable PKer.
While he’s largely been relegated to a fourth-line, checking role, Kuraly is far from just a big body — with his wheels allowing him to both hang with more dynamic talent on a line and add another dimension to a forward trio when it comes to possessing the puck.
During Boston’s Stanley Cup run this past season — in which Kuraly ranked fifth among all Bruins forwards in TOI — the forward made an immediate impact after missing the first four bouts in the opening round against the Maple Leafs.
Before Kuraly’s return, Boston’s fourth line of Nordstrom-Acciari-Wagner was out for 31:04 of 5v5 TOI against Toronto. During that stretch, the Leafs out-attempted the Bruins, 41-27, (equating to a brutal 39.71 CF%) while relinquishing 11 high-danger scoring chances.
But in Boston’s wins over the Leafs in Games 6 and 7, a revamped line with Kuraly in the middle logged 22:15 of 5v5 TOI. During that sequence, the Bruins had a plus-2 goal differential, outshot Toronto by a 12-6 margin and posted a plus-9 differential in terms of shot attempts.
What makes Kuraly so effective in a fourth-line role lies in his speed, which often can make something out of a whole lot of nothing, especially on a 2-1-2 forecheck, where he can excel as both one of the first skaters in on the puck or even as the F3 — in which he can corral skittering pucks headed out toward the blue line and hem them back into Grade-A areas.
(As an F3 — Kuraly
closes in on a loose puck skittering along the boards, prevents a clearing attempt and funnels the biscuit back in towards Pittsburgh’s net. The Kuraly line held a 7-2 edge in shots on goal in this matchup against the Penguins — while primarily matched up with
Evgeni Malkin’s
line.)
Add in a quick release, a sturdy frame and a willingness to both drive to the net and storm through the neutral zone (0.9 rush attempts per 60 minutes of play — 2nd among Bruins forwards), and Kuraly has the tools to really elevate a fourth line into a dynamic unit for Cassidy to deploy.
But would such success translate higher up in the lineup?
While Kuraly can add a spark to a line with a bit more skill, Cassidy noted back in January that such a promotion might stand as more of an in-game adjustment than a long-term route to take when constructing a roster.
“
If he goes to a wing, he can add to a line,” Cassidy said of Kuraly back during the Winter Classic. “He’ll buzz. He’ll create energy. He’ll support pucks down low. What happens to Sean, when his game goes away from him a bit, he gets happy hands and feet, right? So some plays die. And that’s just Sean learning to . . . he’s got a high, high motor, and some of the time the rest of his game doesn’t match up with his motor. But when it does, it looks good. We think he’s a real good fit in the bottom six.
“We talked about moving him up into third-line center. Maybe there is something there? Now that he’s gaining confidence. I look at it more like that. I think he can add to a top-six line at times, if they’re sluggish. He'll forecheck, get some pucks, and go to the net. But I think in general he is better suited for the bottom of the lineup, and hopefully leads a line at some point. That’s what we’re asking of him. He’s been in the league a little bit, so, hey, grab a couple of wingers — if they are younger guys, especially — and pull them along.”
When looking back at last season, Kuraly primarily played alongside
Chris Wagner
and
Noel Acciari
(401 5v5 minutes together) and a combination with Wagner and
David Backes
(100 5v5 minutes together). Together, those two fourth-line combinations posted CF% of 52.12 and 59.24. Not too shabby, given that they were primarily tasked with matching up against top-six skaters.
When added into the mix on the third line, however, the numbers become a bit more mixed when it comes to Kuraly.
Heinen-Kuraly-Bjork - 14 5v5 minutes TOI together: 20 CF% (Bruins out-attempted, 24-6) / outshot, 9-5 / 1-0 edge in 5v5 goals scored
Heinen-Kuraly-Backes - 11 5v5 minutes of TOI together: 29.41 CF% (Bruins out-attempted, 12-5) / outshot, 7-3 / 0 5v5 goals scored for/against
These third-line promotions were largely few and far between in 2018-19, but as a whole, the results weren’t encouraging at all.
*The first chart below lists Kuraly’s teammates for the entirety of the 2018-19 season. As seen here, most of his reps were spent alongside Wagner (red) and Acciari (grey). The third chart represents the season-long progression when it comes to shots for (black) and shots against (red) when Kuraly was on the ice. The black line rising above the red represents more shots going your team’s way. Most of those peaks with shots for have come during Kuraly’s time with his usual cohorts on the fourth line — albeit it does still fluctuate a bit.*
Anders Bjork, Brett Ritchie, Oskar Steen
