Bruce Cassidy, Bruins might have finally found Nick Foligno’s optimal spot in the lineup

Even at the time when the Bruins signed him to a two-year, $7.6 million contract back in late July, Nick Foligno presented the profile of a player whose value you don’t necessarily quantify in baseline metrics like simple goals and assists. 

Then 33 years old at the time of the signing, the Bruins were cognizant of the fact that the former Blue Jackets captain likely wasn’t going to put up 20+ goals and 50+ points, much as did throughout his tenure with Columbus.

But be it his off-ice intangibles, his solid defensive game, his willingness to throw his weight around or his ability to still chip in as a solid middle-six contributor, Foligno still offered an intriguing skillset to a Bruins team looking for a versatile weapon further down on their depth chart. 

"I just think these are the intangibles of why you sign players, why players have value that you might not see just watching the hockey game or whatever sport. He has those," Bruce Cassidy said of Foligno back in November. "Bergy and March are our vocal guys for obvious reasons, leaders in the room, best resumes, etc. They have letters on their sweaters for a reason.

"But they've got to play against, a lot of times, really good lines every night, kill penalties, top power play. There's pressure on them to produce.  Now to come off the ice and try to get everyone else pulled into the fight, some nights it's just a lot to ask over 82 games. That's where Nick Foligno can really help you. He's been there, he knows the appropriate time to stand up, he knows the appropriate time to make something happen on the ice to get the other guys into the fight."

More than five months into the 2021-22 campaign, the Bruins certainly have no qualms with Foligno’s off-ice presence and his place on the team’s veteran hierarchy. But on the ice? Well, that’s a different story. 

Injuries have certainly played in hand in Foligno’s inability to find some traction in Boston’s lineup so far this season. But even when he was available, Cassidy’s efforts to involve Foligno in offensive-minded situations led to underwhelming returns on the scoresheet. Be it in a middle-six grouping or on the netfront of Boston’s top power-play unit, Foligno’s O-zone production (or lack thereof) just didn’t match the quality reps handed to him.

Internally, Boston seems to have found solutions. Both Taylor Hall and Charlie Coyle offer higher returns at the netfront on the B’s power play. The top-six grouping is set (for now) with Jake DeBrusk at 1RW and Erik Haula slotted down the middle. A puck-possession line of Trent Frederic, Coyle and Craig Smith still offers some intrigue. 

For Foligno, the only thing separating him from a very difficult conversation with Cassidy — and the worst-case scenario of games spent watching from the ninth floor — was a vacant spot at left wing on Boston’s checking unit.

Granted, Foligno took the proper mindset when asked to slot down to the fourth line. Still, given the veteran’s hefty resume, Cassidy acknowledged that it’s always a challenge when an established NHLer is asked to augment their role out on the ice. 

“Listen, it's always a challenge with veteran guys. Especially, I think he's approaching 1000 games, to get them to buy into (a new role),” Cassidy said of Foligno. “In fairness, we tried him up in the lineup, we put him on the power play, netfront. We just found other people. I think some of it was when he got hurt, Taylor Hall kind of took over there and we've used Coyle. And then looking at his game more recently, I thought he'd be better suited at left wing. 

“I just thought playing right wing, pucks around the walls, in the neutral zone, he was getting a lot of stuff on his backhand and some guys can play their offwing, they can separate with that first step. So they can get away with it in today's game, especially the way teams reload. So I just thought he'd be better on the left. He's making better plays while he's protecting the puck using his body from that side. So I think that's helped him as well.”

Back in July, Boston likely didn’t think that Foligno was going to settle into a fourth-line role on this roster. But during the short time that Foligno has logged reps next to Tomas Nosek on that line, it’s tough to knock the results.

If there was one positive to draw from Boston’s last-minute loss to the Ducks on Tuesday, it was Foligno’s efforts finally getting rewarded for his engaged play on that north-south line — with the hard-nosed forward posting a Gordie Howe hat trick after lighting the lamp, setting up a Brandon Carlo tally and dropping the gloves with Sam Carrick. 

Foligno’s netfront presence and knack for hovering in high-danger ice finally led to points on the board Tuesday, but earlier games against both the Kings and Kraken left Foligno feeling positive about the way his game has been trending. 

“To be honest with you, I feel like my game has been building,” Foligno said. “I think the role that I'm in right now is obviously a little more defensive-minded and simple. So I'm trying to make sure I do that for the club. But it's always nice to contribute. I mean, that's something I feel like I can do. But I'm making sure that we're playing winning hockey right now."

He added: “That's the kind of game I need to play obviously, for this club. I'm always gonna try and be physical. Some nights, it works a little bit better than others. But that's something that I can bring and will continue to bring — especially at the latter half of the year and in the playoffs. And that, to me, is crucial in playoff hockey. So I'm liking that my game is gearing up towards this time of year.”

Foligno certainly isn’t reinventing the wheel when it comes to his style of play on the fourth line, but the forward’s knack for straight-line, physical play has meshed well with a pivot like Nosek.

As expected, a fourth line featuring both Nosek and Foligno hasn’t been handed heaps of favorable starts on the ice in Cassidy's system — with just 33.9 percent of their faceoffs at 5v5 play set in the offensive zone over their 87:30 of ice time together. 

And yet, despite starting many shifts in their own end, Foligno and Nosek have managed to do a whole lot more than just tread water during that 87:30.

Over that stretch, the Bruins have outscored opponents, 3-1, and held a 51-31 edge in shots on goal. Those are pretty lopsided totals, especially for a line that is usually tasked with slowing down an opposing top-six group down the other end of the ice.

The ceiling of this checking unit could be even higher, especially if Curtis Lazar returns to the lineup within the next few days. While Jesper Froden offers some intrigue as a fill-in candidate at 4RW, Lazar’s pace and underrated scoring touch (13 points in 44 games) could allow for this grouping to capitalize on more of the salvo of shots that they’re generating. 

Has Foligno’s tenure in Boston gone smoothly? Far from it, at least in terms of his on-ice production. But with the Bruins desperately looking to get the veteran going and settled into a defined role ahead of the postseason, this recent stint down on the fourth line offers some hope for all parties. 

“Listen, obviously, you want to play," Foligno said. "But I missed a lot of time. I mean, the injuries didn't help early on — the coach is trying to get to know you, and you're trying to get accustomed to players, and it just didn't work out.

“So we took a more simple approach, let my game kind of come to me, instead of trying to search for it in those minutes when the team, because we need to get going. … We're just trying to be a real solid line for our team. And that's what everyone does. That's what the Bruins do. Every line has a role and a way of playing and we're trying to do that as a group here, which has caused us to have winning hockey late. And we want to keep that going.”

Stats and graphs via Natural Stat Trick.