It’s easy to see why so many players tend to gravitate to Torey Krug. On the ice, he’s a lethal weapon on a power play that has consistently logged 20+ minutes a night for the last several years. But off the ice, Krug's value as a leader -- in a dressing room getting younger and younger with each passing season -- can't be understated.
While the old guard such as Zdeno Chara, Patrice Bergeron, David Krejci, Brad Marchand, Tuukka Rask and others still hold a significant amount of sway in the B's room, a 29-year-old veteran like Krug was well-regarded by many as a key bridge between the roster's veteran core and its growing cast of younger talent. Earlier this season, I spoke to a couple of the Bruins' next wave about the role Krug plays on this team, especially off the ice.
The responses certainly paint the picture of a player that — regardless of on-ice production — served a vital role in Boston's room, and will certainly be missed.
Charlie McAvoy: "He's kind of the bridge. You have guys like Zee and Bergy, who have been around, have done it all and are without a doubt, some of the some of the best people and players and leaders that I'd say, of all time. They are really truly incredible, and both of them are Hall of Fame players in my book. And then you kind of have that bridge there.
"I don't want to look at it as like tiers, but I guess like a different group would be like Torey kinda right underneath — who is very much a leader on this team in every way. But he also relates to the young guys extremely well, like myself, and he was one of the guys right away who I became very close with on the team. And he's great. Like he's just such a great guy, at the rink every single day, he's always making you laugh and always working hard. He just brings a lightness to the rink, so he's awesome and he does so much for our team and then he's obviously an incredible player."
Jake DeBrusk: "I think that’s the best part about our team, it’s the leadership. It’s not necessarily all top-heavy where it's all the core group from that Stanley Cup run. I guess Torey is a guy that’s kind of in that. He’s very easy to talk to. I think he was sick of me within the first frickin' month. I talked to him a lot and we obviously sit close to each other. If I had any questions, I’d usually ask him or one of the other guys who make people feel comfortable. He’s a funny guy, so everyone gets along with him pretty well.”
Brandon Carlo: "I think a best word for that is kind of a glue guy, right? The little middle piece to connect the younger guys with the older guys. His relationships between everybody in the room, it kind of makes everybody come together and flourish all at the same time. If he invites you to dinner, there's a good chance you're going out there with Marchy or Bergy or whatnot. For your first year in the NHL, like myself, uh, that was really important to build those relationships with those guys and not be intimidated.
"I think that's another form of leadership, what he brings to the team. Obviously in the situations where, if we're going through the same thing for a couple of weeks at a time, say things aren't going well or they're going great or we're going through the same struggle with doing something on the ice — If you're hearing it from the same guy every time, it can kind of get repetitive. So those are the guys that kind of step up. And when you hear them say something in those moments, it's definitely huge and it kind of transforms just makes a different flow for everything."
Matt Grzelcyk: "I think he’s kind of by himself almost right in the middle (of the leadership group). "I think he’s meant a lot to us, kind of coming up the last few years and sharing his experience with us. I’ve got the pleasure of knowing him for — I was there for his first development camp when he just signed with the Bruins. He’s been awesome for us. Obviously, he’s a great player, but for him just to relay his experiences and being such a calming presence as well. He carries that out on the ice with him too. Whenever we get in some sticky situations where we’re facing a little bit of adversity, he’s definitely one of the guys that can help you get out of it.
"I think he kind of gets a bad rap (on the ice) just because he’s so gifted offensively, that some people think that he’s defensively irresponsible. But that’s something that he takes a lot of pride in. Being someone with a similar stature, I feel very blessed to be on the same team as him and watch how he approaches the game and we talk a lot about certain situations and how to defend better. I think that’s something that he takes a ton of pride in, playing shutdown defense. I think he did a great job of that in the playoffs last year. Hopefully people take more note of that.”
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As for his now former coach?
Bruce Cassidy: "I think Torey had lots of confidence coming in. Does that make him a leader? It's confidence — if he's practicing the right way. Confidence in terms of leading his pair in drills ,by doing the drill the right way, finishing drills — what I mean by finishing is, when there's battles down low, not wanting to get scored on and then recovering pucks and breaking them out. But I think some of it has evolved for him. I think most young guys are trying to establish themselves first, get their foot in the door and then once you get to that step, excel on the ice, excel against your own competition so you can be the first call up. If you're already in Boston, then it's excel so that you can get more minutes. So whatever the case may be, I think that's where most people start.
"They just don't have a lot of time right then to be leaders and maybe it's not necessary right away. Especially in our room, we have a lot of veteran leaders, but if they can learn from them and grow over time, then yes, Torey has done a good job in that middle sort of group leader. You've got Zee, Bergy, Krech ,Tuukka that have been here a little longer, but Torey's, a guy in the middle that we were absent of for a while there for whatever reason, guys got moved..
"So he picked up that void in a hurry and he helped with the younger guys. Because the other thing with that is sometimes if you're you know a 21-22 year old, you don't always want to go to the veteran guys — you're intimidated, but you'll go to a Krug that's 27-28 ,that's closer to your own age group so that's the part he's done a real good job with and definitely has leadership skills. I've said all along I think you know, he's captain material. He's a guy that could easily be a coach down the road when his playing days are done because he's a student of the game and I think he gets along with everybody — so people like that in them and will gravitate towards that type of player."
Elsewhere, Kevan Miller — when speaking with the media Friday evening — actually didn't even know that Krug had already signed with St. Louis. The press corps had to be the bearer of bad news.
"Ah, man. Did he really? That’s a bummer," Miller said. "Ah, man. Obviously, he’ll certainly be missed from a player standpoint. From a personal standpoint, I’ve been basically with the guy for my entire career and his entire career. He’s a good friend and I wish him nothing but the best. But I’ll tell him to keep his head up when we face St. Louis. In all reality, that’s tough news for us but I wish him the best and he’ll certainly be missed."
https://twitter.com/ConorRyan_93/status/1314735035258482688
Meanwhile, David Pastrnak made his thoughts very clear about Pastrnak's departure via Twitter on Saturday afternoon:
https://twitter.com/pastrnak96/status/1314970965680545793
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Analytics Ace?
When speaking on Saturday about the strengths of Craig Smith's game, Don Sweeney was quick to note that the 31-year-old veteran checked off plenty of boxes for the B's, noting that he's established himself as a reliable 20-goal scorer. But, as we have stressed multiple times already here at BSJ, Smith has also been widely regarded among the analytics community as perhaps the value pickup this offseason, especially when compared to more notable (but flawed) wingers on the market such as Mike Hoffman.
https://twitter.com/JFreshHockey/status/1314954655915483136
Given Smith's standing in certain circles as an elite 5v5 weapon (especially diving deeper beyond the baseline numbers), it does bring up an interesting point —just how much does analytics play into these decisions when it comes to identifying free-agent targets, specially ones that bring plenty of bang for your buck ($3.1 million AAV for Smith over three seasons)?
While Sweeney noted that there are multiple factors and lenses that a team applies and looks through when it comes to identifying players out on the UFA/trade market, analytics is indeed now engrained into an NHL franchise (at least, a competent one) when it comes to the step-by-step process utilized to weed out talent among a large pool of available players. It's a collaborative process — one that, hopefully, paints the full picture of a player that Sweeney and the Bruins will look to bring aboard upon reaching out to his agent.
"There is certainly a layer and a variable that we look at," Sweeney said. "We have different lenses. Obviously, we have pro scouts that do an awful lot of work and travel to attend these games and follow up with video, follow up with having knowledge of the players and trying to do our best job as possible to know how that player is going to fit in our lineup. Having coaching meetings as to where they’re going to use that player. And obviously, talking to the player himself.
"Spending a lot of time yesterday with Craig and his representatives and allowing him asking any questions that he feels most comfortable to make the best decision. It’s a two-way street in that regard. You’re trying to recruit a player, obviously trying to identify him first and foremost that he can come in and help your team. And the analytic piece has become a tool for all of us to use and certainly we try to add it to all of our decision making."
B's right to walk away from OEL deal:
Well, so much for all of the fireworks involved with a potential Oliver Ekman-Larsson blockbuster. Ultimately, all of those rumors fizzled out into pretty much nothing — and it appears that most of it falls on Arizona's inability to make concessions when it comes to unloading its captain's sizable contract. While Boston appeared to be in the driver's seat as a trade suitor for OEL (with a cap-strapped Canucks team also lurking), Sweeney and the B's never pulled the trigger on a deal to bring the 29-year-old defenseman over to shore up their blue line.
Why? Well, despite the fact that a Coyotes team in brutal fiscal shape was going to get a major bailout via Boston by taking on the final seven years and $57.7 million of OEL's bloated contract — they were also trying to snag a number of blue-chip prospects from the B's along the way, per the always informed Mark Divver.