Why Anders Bjork’s new 3-year contract extension could quickly become a steal

At this time last year, Anders Bjork was on much more uneven ground. 

In the span of just 13 months, Bjork found himself going under the knife — with a pair of major procedures on the same shoulder derailing both his first and second seasons up in the NHL ranks.

Finally cleared from a six-month recovery timeline last July, Bjork entered yet another Bruins training camp motivated to recoup that precious time of development lost to injury — while also cracking a forward corps loaded with established pro talent.

Fair to say, Bjork made the most of his opportunity.

A year removed from offseason training geared toward an uncertain future, the 23-year-old winger signed a three-year contract extension with the Bruins on Wednesday evening — with the Bruins signing off on a deal that represents an average annual value of $1.6 million.

"I think we started talking about it during the pause a little bit and I just think, talking to my family and my agent about it, we just felt like we should get this done," Bjork said. "It's a good opportunity with such a fantastic team. I want to be in Boston, playing for this team. And we felt that it was the right decision to sign it and just focus on playing and not have to worry about that in this postseason at all. So that's kind of how we came to that conclusion."

A crafty winger that has primarily skated next to Charlie Coyle this season (383:31 of 5v5 TOI together), Bjork appeared in 58 games with Boston in 2019-20 — tallying nine goals and 19 points while averaging 12:56 of ice time per contest. Even though Bjork was often the odd man out of the lineup at the time of the pause, the Mequon, Wisconsin native appears poised to reclaim his spot next to Coyle this postseason — given both his strong showing so far in Phases 3 and 4, along with the absences of both Ondrej Kase and Nick Ritchie.

Already a versatile weapon up front for the Bruins, Bjork's production falls well within market value when it comes to the $1.6 million cap hit he will command over the next three seasons. But when factoring in the heaps of potential still present for a player with just 108 NHL games on his resume over three seasons, Bjork's new deal could very quickly turn into another steal for Don Sweeney and Co.



When Bjork first signed his entry-level contract with Boston back in May 2017, many scouting reports painted the picture of a dynamic winger with a tantalizing offensive ceiling. By the time he left South Bend, Bjork tallied 109 points in 115 career games with the Fighting Irish — earning himself a finalist nod for the Hobey Baker Award in 2017.

Yet, when Boston drafted Bjork in the fifth round of the 2014 NHL Draft, Sweeney noted that Bjork was regularly deployed more as a two-way contributor than the offensive force he was at Notre Dame.

"It's kind of funny, because he was drafted back with the U.S. program and not played in primary offensive roles, but a real good complementary part to that team," Sweeney said. "And we felt there was potential upside from the scoring ability with Anders if he was playing in elevated roles and power-play situations. Then of course, he goes on to Notre Dame and that's exactly what happened. Now he's shown at the AHL level that when he gets put in those situations, he scores and puts up points.

"He's just had some inconsistencies, a lot attributed to the injuries ... But he settled into a second power-play unit with us, he's killed penalties. So I think those things are starting to emerge, where we saw him as a two-way complementary player at the U.S. program and then a primary player with Notre Dame. And I think he's had moments of those situations with us, at the NHL level, certainly at the American Hockey League level —  he's played those primary roles, and is to be determined whether or not he can maintain the consistency."

Indeed, if there's anything potentially holding back Bjork at the NHL level, it would be his ability to consistently generate offense, especially during 5v5 play. Among the 16 total Bruins that have logged at least 400 minutes of 5v5 ice time, Bjork has the sixth-lowest expected goals for per 60 minutes rate at 1.99 — with Joakim Nordstrom, Chris Wagner and Sean Kuraly standing as only forwards with lower xGF/60 totals.

Still, there are plenty of signs that point to Bjork developing into at least a regular offensive contributor with a few more years under his belt. Some of that will likely come with simply more reps, while carving out a definitive role in Boston's lineup next to a regular group of fellow forwards should help in that regard.

But Bjork has already showcased plenty of flashes, generating a 4.02 goals for per 60 minutes rate when skating on a line with Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand. 

(For reference, the line of Marchand-Bergeron-Pastrnak has generated a goals for per 60 minutes rate of 3.63 over the last three seasons.)

Add in Bjork's ability to carry the puck through the neutral zone and put opposing skaters on their heels, and the young winger could realistically tally 15-20 goals a season as he continues to round out his overall game.



(Another reminder of this awesome piece that Corey Sznajder put together — highlighting Bjork's ability to consistently break into the opponent's end of the ice. Even if Bjork may not carry in the puck (49%) nearly as much as players like Pastrnak (64%), he does lead all Bruins skaters in terms of entries per 60 minutes — posting a rate of 25.80. Even if he isn’t directly carrying the puck into the O-zone at the same rate as a player like Pastrnak, Bjork’s ability to consistently enter the offensive zone, whether it be carrying it in, dumping it in, etc., makes him a very valuable asset that should only continue to improve once he continues to round out his overall game.)

"I think that it's grown a bit, for sure," Bjork said of his offensive game. "But I think I'm a long ways away from where I want to be with that and where I feel that I have the potential to be. It doesn't happen right away for every player that becomes a scorer in the league. And I think that's sort of my mindset — working my way to build my offensive game and contribute that way because I think I do have the ability to do that.

"And I think I'm just going to continue to work and continuing to build that confidence mentally is a huge component of that. My mantra right now is to just keep on building it and building it and hopefully reach my potential in the end. I don't know exactly how long that will take, but I want to get there as soon as I possibly can."

https://twitter.com/ConorRyan_93/status/1223812537189388288

And even if his offensive game were to plateau around the same level it was at this season, a $1.6 million cap hit is still solid value, especially when adding in those gaudy transition stats and Bjork's eye-opening defensive metrics.

Perhaps he's benefited from primarily skating on a line anchored by a puck-possession force in Coyle, but the Bruins have rarely been on the ropes whenever Bjork has been on the ice — with Boston's expected goal (xG) rate dropping from 2.28 to 2.09. In total, Bjork's own expected goals against per 60 minutes rate of 1.82 ranks second only to Matt Grzelcyk among Bruins regulars this season.



Put it all together, and you have a player in Bjork that, at this lowest possible projection, is still a defensive gem that can aid in transition while providing complimentary offense.

But if he turns a corner and begins burying chances with regularity, an already bargain deal could quickly develop into a complete heist for Boston — a major coup given the uncharted waters that lie ahead in a flat-cap era. 

"I still think there's some projection in terms of whether or not Anders will have consistency from the scoring and offensive standpoint. What he has [done] is filled in the gaps defensively. ... He's had some hiccups with injuries.  No question it set him back. But you see the fact that his game has been rounding out as a more complete two-way player, using him in penalty-killing situations. Now he's able to settle in on both left and right wing and I think that's where the versatility is gained. I know he wants to continue to get better. He's got to find a confidence at the NHL level able to score and finish. And if not, he's going to be a real good two-way hockey player that has speed and versatility in this lineup."

Well worth $1.6 million, I'd say.

Stats and graphs via Natural Stat Trick, Corey Sznajder, Sean Tierney and HockeyViz.