Why it makes sense for Bruins to start Anders Bjork on 4th line Tuesday night

Two minutes and 48 seconds. 

That’s the total amount of 5v5 TOI that Boston’s latest assortment of a fourth line has ever logged entering Tuesday’s showdown with the Maple Leafs — with Anders Bjork  standing as the latest cog looking to mesh with an already proven bottom-six duo in Sean Kuraly and Chris Wagner. 

Bjork’s promotion from Providence on Tuesday morning was certainly warranted, given that the 23-year-old winger racked up three goals and eight total points over seven games down in the AHL ranks. 

The Bruins could certainly use Bjork’s speed and offensive punch in its lineup — not only due to the club’s already evident secondary-scoring woes, but given another rash of injuries that will keep David Krejci, Karson Kuhlman and Joakim Nordstrom off the ice against its Original Six foe. 

But considering Bjork’s profile as a crafty player in the O-zone, one would think that Bruce Cassidy would allow the youngster to hit the ground running on a forward trio with a bit more firepower. 

After all, over the span of 54:49 of 5v5 ice time in the preseason, the Bruins held an absurd 80-31 edge in shot attempts when Bjork was on the ice. When paired next to Coyle during that stretch, Boston tallied a goal, generated three high-danger scoring chances and held a 77.27% shot share in just 10:03 of TOI. 

But for the time being, at least, a spot next to Kuraly and Wagner stands as a perfect jumping off point for Bjork as he looks to stay up with the big club.

Why? 



In an ideal scenario, Bjork would most likely be deployed at LW on a third line featuring both Coyle and Danton Heinen, given that that trio found plenty of success during reps back in September. But given the current state of both the second and third lines, the Bruins would be wise to avoid putting Bjork in a spot where consistent minutes are far from a given.

With Boston opting to keep Bjork at left wing for now, a spot on Boston's second line is off the table for now, with Coyle expected to center a group with Jake DeBrusk at left wing and Brett Ritchie to his right. Given DeBrusk's offensive breakthrough on Saturday, the Bruins will not want to split up the winger with a playmaking center like Coyle, nor would they want to put DeBrusk on his weak side in order to accommodate another LW in Bjork.

The third line — featuring Heinen, Par Lindholm and David Backes — does seem to make much more sense in terms of a landing spot for Bjork. With Heinen's versatility, the Bruins could have shifted the two-way forward to right wing, slot in Bjork to Lindholm's left and bump down Backes on the fourth line.

But that third line, especially with Lindholm tasked with driving it on offense, is far from a sure thing at this point in the season, and Cassidy has often opted to give that line a very short leash. Since returning to the lineup on Thursday, Lindholm has only averaged 10:18 of ice time — while Backes only logged 6:42 during Saturday's loss to the Maple Leafs.

If things go south early on that line, it wouldn't come as much of a surprise if Cassidy instead opts to lean more on the two lines he's trusted from the start in both Patrice Bergeron and Kuraly's — while increasing the reps for DeBrusk-Coyle-Ritchie. As such, putting Bjork on a line with so much uncertainty isn't very conducive when it comes to allowing the winger to find much success in his latest call-up.

Even if Boston's fourth line is a bit more limited in terms of an offensive ceiling, putting Bjork with Kuraly and Wagner would at least give him regular reps — with the fourth-line mainstays each averaging over 14 minutes of ice time so far in 2019-20.

And with those consistent minutes, Bjork can be a valuable asset on a north-south line that often generates chances off of a suffocating forecheck. Bjork's speed has always been evident — and will be put to good use on this line — but his improved play away from the puck also makes Tuesday's lineup shuffling all the more easier for Cassidy when it comes to finding the right fit for his latest call-up.

"When he left he was bringing lots of energy, was on top of pucks, he was attacking the net. Did a lot of things well,” Cassidy said of Bjork. “Seemed stronger, sustained his shifts better from the first period to the third period. 

“I put him on that line because I think he has certainly some of what Nordy brings on that line, which is they’re effective because they’re hard to play against, some of them are tenacious, some of them are on pucks, some of them are a bit of both. And I think his defensive game has improved, so we’ll see if he’s prepared for that. So that was the thinking there. “He’s got two very responsible players, he can add a little offense to that group. Not a lot of pressure for him to go out necessarily and score. We’ll see how he plays up here and then decide what the best fit is.”

Now, when the likes of Krejci, Nordstrom and Kuhlman return, Bjork could stick around and settle into a spot more favorable for his offensive talents, especially with Coyle at the pivot. But with such a lineup configuration currently unavailable, the Bruins are making the best of what they have — and that's a steady dose of minutes for Bjork alongside two trusted skaters in Kuraly and Wagner.

"I think I just want to play hard, play a 200-foot game," Bjork said of playing on the fourth line. "I think those players have been very effective playing a 200-foot game and getting offensive opportunities out of that. I think I’m just going to try to follow their lead and bring some speed.”