With the calendar now turned to 2020, here are 10 predictions I have for the Bruins in the new year:
1. Bruins reach new scoring milestones
For the first time since the 1992-93 season, the Bruins will have two players reach at least 100 points in the same season, with David Pastrnak and Brad Marchand hitting the century mark in 2020.
(For the record, the last Bruins to achieve that feat were Adam Oates and Joe Juneau during that ‘92-93 season).
After having a potential 50-goal campaign wiped out following a thumb injury last February, Pastrnak remains healthy this winter and caps off this year with a league-leading 57 tallies. With another 100-point season, Marchand joins Peter Mahovlich (1974-75 and 1975-76) as just the second player in league history to record their first two 100-point campaigns in their 10th season or later.
Patrice Bergeron, who will miss at least another 5-6 games down the stretch due to a nagging, lower-body injury, will still reach a new career high in scoring with 83 points on the year.
2. B’s continue to look in-house as trade deadline approaches …
The Bruins might have a couple of major vacancies up front on the roster (headlined by the still unsolved spot at second-line wing), but much as they did last season during the dog days of January and February — methinks Boston is going to exhaust their in-house options before taking an extended look at the trade market.
As Don Sweeney noted on 98.5 The Sports Hub on Saturday, it wouldn’t come as much of a surprise if Jack Studnicka gets another look up in the NHL ranks in short order, especially if the B’s want to keep Charlie Coyle at the 2RW spot for now.
Studnicka’s stock has soared in his first full season down in Providence (14 goals, 26 points in 35 games) and he is worthy of another look after a brief sample size back in November, but entrusting such a key role on this B’s roster to a 20-year-old rookie is quite the risk, especially come the playoffs.
3. … but finally relent and snag a top-six winger, again.
Studnicka might inject some much-needed skill into the bottom six, especially if Coyle remains up at 2RW, but Boston isn’t going to charge into the playoffs once again with such an unproven player in that spot.
(If anything, expect Studnicka to crack the roster out of camp for the 2020-21 season, and remain up with the big club for a long, long time.)
After exhausting their internal options, Sweeney ultimately
bites the bullet and acquires a top-six winger at the deadline — bringing aboard another local product in Boxford’s Chris Kreider.
Adding a bonafide talent like Kreider will not come without a major cost, especially given Boston’s cap constraints. While waiving Brett Ritchie and a couple of minor moves might save the B’s some cash, Boston ultimately parts ways with its first-round pick in order to pry Kreider from New York, with Jeff Gorton agreeing to retain some cash in exchange for such a coveted draft selection.
4. Torey Krug re-ups.
The NHL’s free-agent class of 2020 loses a key piece before the offseason can even get underway, as Boston and Krug come to terms on an extension that will keep the puck-moving defenseman with the B’s for the foreseeable future.
Krug, who will become the sixth defenseman in Bruins history to reach the 60-point threshold this year (Orr, Bourque, Park, Vadnais, O’Connell), becomes the Bruins’ new highest-paid player on an annual basis. Still, at $7.5 million per year, it’s still considered a bargain when compared to what he’d likely command on the open market.
5. David Backes’ tenure in Boston ends.
The Bruins might not find a way to get Backes’ contract off the books this season (especially with the minimal savings gained by way of a buyout), but the veteran forward will not be with the club come training camp in September.
With Boston already parting ways with a first-rounder to acquire Kreider with a minimal cap hit, the Bruins opt to not deal Backes (and include additional sweeteners) this offseason, instead buying him out once the league year shifts to the 2020-21 campaign. Once that happens, Boston will only be on the hook for a $4 million cap hit in 2020-21, along with a residual $1 million hit in 2021-22.
Not ideal, given how much Boston can do with that additional $4 million, but with over $3 million in dead money coming off the books, the Bruins will give themselves some breathing room by finally taking action with Backes’ contract.
6. Boston takes first in the Atlantic.
Don’t fret. Boston will avoid winning the Presidents’ Trophy and all the misfortunes that come with it this year (that “honor” will go to the Capitals). Still, expect the Bruins to secure first place in the Atlantic Division, ensuring that the Maple Leafs will once again get bounced in the first round — this time at the hands of a still loaded Lightning team.
7. Anders Bjork starts earning consistent top-six minutes.
Jake DeBrusk and David Krejci have been regular linemates for years now, but the results those two have generated together in 2019-20 have left a lot to be desired. Even with 62.50% of their faceoffs coming in the offensive zone, opponents have actually held a 123-109 edge in 5v5 scoring chances during DeBrusk + Krejci’s 294:34 of ice time together.
With Anders Bjork continuing to improve more and more as the year has progressed, look for the winger to earn plenty of looks with Krejci during the second half of the regular season. DeBrusk, stuck in an up-and-down third year with the B’s, could benefit from the demotion, especially if he still has a center like Coyle driving play.
8. Charlie McAvoy finishes the year with five goals.
Still snakebit halfway through the 2019-20 season, McAvoy finally breaks through down the stretch this season — lighting the lamp five times over the team’s final 39 games of the year.
Four of those tallies come away from McAvoy’s usual reps next to Zdeno Chara, with McAvoy benefiting from the favorable O-zone starts that come his way when skating with Torey Krug.
9. The Bruins beat the Blues in the Stanley Cup Final.
Unlike last season, the Blues don’t need to reel off an improbable worst-to-first run. The 26-10-7 Blues are even better this year, with plenty of depth both on the blue line and up front. Add in the continued strong play of Jordan Binnington in net, coupled with St. Louis’ trademark physical play, and my bet is on Craig Berube’s club once again punching its ticket to the Stanley Cup Final.
Boston, its forward corps finally clicking with Kreider in the top six and Coyle driving the third line, also fights its way out of a tough Eastern Conference — headlined by a memorable seven-game triumph over the Capitals in the Conference Final.
Similar to Boston and St. Louis’ meeting back in October, there’s no love lost between these two clubs during another grueling, memorable seven-game showdown. Once again, it all comes down to a Game 7 at TD Garden — where a pair of goals from Zdeno Chara and Jake DeBrusk in the final five minutes of regulation lift Boston to a 2-0 victory and another Stanley Cup.
After another lighter workload during the regular season, a rested Tuukka Rask wins the Conn Smythe Trophy after a dominant postseason. You know, the same trophy that Rask would have easily won last June if the entire team didn’t fail to show up in Game 7. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
10. Zdeno Chara hangs up his skates.
After that Game 7 triumph over St. Louis, Chara finally calls it a career — with a second title in Boston capping off a 14-year run that will soon become immortalized when No. 33 is raised up to the rafters at TD Garden. Patrice Bergeron is promptly named captain, Chara remains with the organization in a coaching role and a spot is open for Urho Vaakanainen to establish himself in 2020-21.
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