Waiting game continues with Bergeron, Grzelcyk set for shoulder surgery & 10 other takeaways from Bruins' ‘breakup’ day

The Bruins held their annual breakup day on Monday morning, with multiple players speaking to the media after completing their exit interviews with the coaching and management staff. Here are 12 total takeaways from the eight-hour marathon of media scrums in the B’s locker room.

Bergeron will need more time

The path that the Bruins chart this offseason — be it a lengthy retooling, scorched-earth rebuild or opting to just run things back — is all going hinge on Patrice Bergeron’s decision to either return for a 19th season or hang up his skates for good.

And as of right now, it looks as though the Bruins are going to be waiting a bit at these crossroads while their captain mulls his options.

After not revealing his hand in the immediate aftermath of Boston’s Game 7 loss to the Hurricanes on Saturday, Bergeron stressed once again on Monday that he will need more time to evaluate his options before informing the Bruins of his decision.

“I don’t know. I think it’s just more time,” Bergeron said. “Right now, it’s only been a couple days. All I did was really enjoy the family at home. I’m going to need some time to think about a lot of things and come up with the best decision for myself and my family.”

For Bergeron, the primary factor that sways his decision might just come down to more time spent with his family, as the 36-year-old pivot noted that he felt pretty healthy for most of the 2021-22 season. 

Even with a few flare-ups — a broken nose in December and an elbow infection in March — Bergeron still operated at a high level on the ice, posting 65 points over 73 games and setting himself up for a record-breaking fifth Selke Trophy.

But could the trajectory of this Bruins team also potentially impact Bergeron’s decision? After all, it’d be well within Bergeron’s right to not want to trudge through another long season and risk injury for a team whose contention window might be shut at this point.

Bergeron didn’t give such narrative much merit. 

“As far as the team, I’ve always believed in what this organization has done as a whole,” Bergeron said. “They’ve always made sure they would put the best team forward on the ice, and I believe they’ll do that in the future as well. I think we have some great players in this locker room, and most of which are coming back. For me, it’s not something I’m concerned about. It’s more about taking time to make right decision for me and my family.”

Boston or bust 

Speaking of not giving narratives plenty of merit…

In a far from shocking revelation, Bergeron dismissed any notion that he’d opt to play elsewhere in the NHL if he did return in 2022-23. 

"No. I’ve been here for my whole career,” Bergeron said of playing for another NHL organization. “Obviously it’s a special place for me. It’s not on my mind right now. I just need to take time and regroup."

Of course, a lot of this talk was brewed up by rumors that the Montreal Canadiens were going to be serious players for Bergeron if he was hitting the market — a lazy case of trying to connect the dots for a fit that was really never going to be there for the Habs.

And yes, even though Montreal’s GM is Bergeron’s former agent in Kent Hughes, the B’s captain has stressed time and time again that he grew up loathing the Habs as a kid living in Quebec City.  

And even if he had some stronger connections, Montreal’s roster is going to be in ROUGH shape in 2022-23, and also doesn’t boast a whole lot of cap space. 

Nope, it was never going to happen. 

B’s next generation still remains optimistic about the future 

Of course, if Bergeron does indeed opt to retire this summer, Brad Marchand stated the obvious when speaking with the media on Monday.

"Losing Bergy, whenever the time does come, that's a hole we will never fill — on or off the ice.”

Still, when pressed about the future trajectory of this team, Marchand opted to take an optimistic view of what remains of Boston’s roster — which would still feature a pretty solid core of talent with him, Charlie McAvoy, David Pastrnak, Hampus Lindholm, Jeremy Swayman and others. 

“Yeah, it's always nerve-wracking whenever there's gonna be changes — because you don't know how it's gonna affect it — negatively or positively,” Marchand said. “But I think the one thing that we have going for this group is that our management staff and our ownership, they want to win so much and so bad that they work tirelessly around the clock to try to improve the group and do what's best for the group.

“And when guys move on, it opens the door for other guys to come in and take on bigger roles and draft picks to come up and kind of do their thing. We got some good young prospects that are going to come in in the next couple of years. And hopefully they can make some big strides and come in. And that's what makes teams good these days. ... so I'm looking forward to whatever challenge comes.”

If Bergeron is out of the picture, the “C” will likely be stitched onto Marchand’s sweater. Locker-room stalwarts like McAvoy, Pastrnak and Brandon Carlo all wore the “A” at various points this season. You may not be able to replace Bergeron’s on-ice impact down both ends of the ice — nor his leadership and the presence he commands in the room.

But Marchand believes that the culture that both Bergeron and Zdeno Chara helped established should be able to carry on to future generations of B’s skaters.

“Hopefully, the guys have seen enough from him and learned enough about that culture and his experience and everything will continue to flourish in the organization,” Marchand said. “It's part of what's made this team so great for so long. And it's part of why guys want to come here and be a part of this organization. When you go to other teams and talk to players, they hear about the leadership within the group and the team. … Hopefully, again, that's something that doesn't get lost through the generations that are now coming in. 

“But, there are guys that can learn to lead and can learn to take on a bigger role, but there are guys that are just naturally gifted in that way. And he's one of those guys — he's a natural leader. And he's worked extremely hard to push himself to a place where he can take even more responsibility. But the more responsibility I've taken in that role, the more I realize how special a leader he is.”

Grzelcyk expected to miss start of regular season with shoulder surgery 

Given Matt Grzelcyk’s struggles and the number of uncharacteristic D-zone woes he committed during Boston’s first-round series with Carolina, it was safe to assume that something was off with the puck-moving blueliner.

For as much as Grzelcyk’s struggles in playoff hockey has been put under a microscope, it was pretty evident that there was a lot more hindering the Charlestown native than just some heavy Hurricanes forechecking over the last few weeks.

And sure enough, Grzelcyk confirmed on Monday that he’s been playing with a dislocated shoulder for close to four months — suffering the injury back in January after absorbing a heavy hit from Winnipeg’s Pierre-Luc Dubois.

Grzelcyk noted that he’ll undergo surgery on the shoulder next week — and even though the recovery timeline is a bit unclear, there stands a pretty good chance that he misses the start of the 2022-23 regular season. 

Even though Grzelcyk and the Bruins tried to manage the ailment throughout the season, the pain did hinder the defenseman from playing to his strengths, especially when it came to moving the puck out of danger areas in the D-zone. 

“It’s tough, having that in the back of your mind,” Grzelcyk said. “Playoffs are physical in general. But having to deal with that is obviously pretty challenging. They do a really good job on the forecheck as well. Kind of hem you in there a little bit. Because I had pain in the shoulder, it was tough to get my feet moving and play like I feel like I’m capable of playing and make some dynamic plays out there.”

Recapping other bruised B’s

While Grzelcyk stood as the most banged-up Bruins regular when it came to his recovery timeline, he was far from the only one.

Marchand acknowledged that he was going to “need something done this summer or next summer” — due to suffering an AC joint injury after getting knocked into the boards by Garnet Hathaway on Jan. 20.

“We'll take a look at that," Marchand said. "I haven't talked to the doctor. So we'll go through that today and try to decide what we're going to do."

Lindholm believes he’ll need a PRP injection in his knee that took a beating against the Red Wings back on April 5, but he doesn’t believe he’ll need to go under the knife. 

Given the manner in which Craig Smith’s game bottomed out in the playoffs (0 points, -5, 13 shots on goal over seven games), it was a pretty safe assumption that the veteran forward was dealing with something major over the final stretch of the season. But Smith downplayed the notion, adding that he was dealing with a regular assortment of bumps and bruises — and stating that he doesn’t believe he’ll need any offseason surgeries to correct the issue.

Pastrnak admitted that he’s been dealing with a core injury since mid-March that resulted in some “torn cartilage”, but added that he doesn’t think he’ll need surgery either to address the issue. 

DeBrusk doesn’t offer any clarity on future

If Bergeron does return, one has to imagine that the Bruins might be hesitant to move a guy in Jake DeBrusk, even with that standing trade request that has been in place since last summer.

After finishing the third on the team with 25 goals and standing as one of the few Bruins forwards who provided some impact against Carolina, the Bruins could opt to just keep DeBrusk, considering that he signed a two-year, $8 million extension on March 21 — the NHL’s trade deadline.

Or, of course, DeBrusk could just decide to rescind that trade request — opting to instead remain in Boston, continue to raise his value as a top-six regular over the next two seasons, and then cash in with a long-term, lucrative contract as a UFA in 2024 when he’s still just 27 years old.

But DeBrusk didn’t budge on Monday when asked if he has had a change of heart when it comes to wanting out of Boston. 

“I haven't thought about it,” DeBrusk said of wanting to stay in Boston. “I mean, it was kind of nice to not think about that since the deadline. I've been spending lots of time with the boys here and it's been two days and I'll go back home with my family and kind of go over the year more thoroughly, I guess. And then kind of make my call from there. So that's kind of where I'm at.”

While conventional thinking would seem to paint the picture that DeBrusk’s contract extension was designed to make him a more appealing trade chip to teams not wanting to deal with handing out a qualifying offer, DeBrusk also added that he wouldn’t have even inked that deal if he wasn’t comfortable with the possibility of sticking in Boston. 

“I don't think I would have signed something like that if I wasn't okay with that," DeBrusk said of sticking around. "Obviously, it was crazy circumstances around that time, but yeah — I'm excited for another two years. I was excited to sign that. I think my game took off after that as well. I think that that's when, like I said earlier, I didn't have to answer these questions for a while. So that was kind of nice.”

A trying year for Pastrnak

When you look at the baseline stats, it sure seemed like a normal season for Pastrnak, who lit the lamp 40 times for the second time in his career.

But in the grand scheme of things, hockey fell very far down on the list of priorities for the B’s star winger, especially after both he and his partner Rebecca lost their newborn son Viggo last June.

“Just time, you know? Time and love,” an emotional Pastrnak said of how he managed to endure during this season. “Very tough. Very tough. I wouldn’t wish that on anybody in their life. Hopefully, there’s better things ahead of us.”

Wishing the best for both David and Rebecca as they continue to forge ahead through such a tragedy. 

Pastrnak not focused on contract talks

Bergeron’s status remains the primary focus of this B’s offseason. But next year, the B’s will have another interesting conundrum on their hands when it comes to Pastrnak’s pending pay day. 

The Bruins have benefited from the bargain deal that Pastrnak signed back in September 2017 — a six-year, $40 million contract that equates to a $6.6 million cap hit. Since crossing the t’s and dotting the i’s on that contract, Pastrnak has gone out and tallied 181 goals over his next five seasons, two of which were shortened due to COVID.

Pastrnak has noted multiple times over the years that money isn’t everything when it comes to his priorities and his enjoyment of the game he loves. One could assume that he’d be willing to take a bit of a hometown discount on a new potential deal. That being said … a discount for Pastrnak’s new contract is still going to stand as an $8 - 8.5 million annual cap hit, and that may still be on the low end of things. 

The Bruins would be wise to begin initiating these contract conversations sooner rather than later. But as of right now, Pastrnak hasn’t dwelled on his pending contract status all that much.

“I haven’t given it thought yet, to be honest,” Pastrnak said. “A lot of other stuff to be worrying about the whole year. I haven’t been thinking about it all.”

Bruins sign Jakub Zboril to two-year contract

The Bruins managed to already reinforce their D corps going into the 2022-23 season, as the club announced on Monday that it signed Jakub Zboril to a two-year contract extension with an annual cap hit of $1.1 million.

It stands as a reassuring stamp on what was otherwise a trying season for Zboril — who opened the year on the outside looking in at NHL reps, impressed in late fall and early winter while looking like a legit NHLer, only to then tear his ACL down in Nashville on Dec. 2. 

But if he’s healthy, Zboril could be a dependable depth or third-pairing option on this team in 2022-23, especially if he continues the level of play that he showcased this past season. Zboril’s return could further prompt Boston to move another left-side defender in Mike Reilly or Grzelcyk — although the latter’s injury could hamper his viability as a trade chip. 

"I did it once. So I'm gonna be ready to do it again next year,” Zboril said when asked about fighting for a starting spot on this roster. “It's NHL, it's Boston Bruins — it's always a battle for a spot, every single training camp. So just gonna get ready through the summer and I'll be back and be ready to compete for my spot.”

Mutual interest for Lazar, Bruins?

At first glance, Curtis Lazar seems like the latest in a long line of Bruins fourth-line stalwarts who arrive here, thrive in their roles, max out their value and then sign elsewhere as Boston replenishes that checking-line pool of talent.

But Lazar noted that his meeting with Don Sweeney on Monday was positive, adding that both sides could be intrigued with working out a new contract.

“Just got out of my meeting with Sweens," Lazar said. "I think the simple answer is there's interest from both sides. I love playing here. I love being a Boston Bruin. The city, the fans, the organization — they've all been great to me and my family and I want to be back here. But again, there are other parts. There's the business side. So I mean, we'll see what happens.”

Blidh seems ready to head elsewhere

Lazar might be interested in sticking around in Boston, but it sure seems like the same can’t be said about Anton Blidh.

While the 27-year-old forward impressed at times during the regular season as a hard-nosed, straight-line skater ready and willing to pester the competition (while also posting nine points over 32 games), Blidh regularly found himself on the outside looking in at reps — appearing in just 32 games.

"Some days I'd rather be in the AHL. I did not sign here to sit in the press box,” Blidh said Monday, adding: “Playoffs is the fun part of playing hockey and I felt like I can be a difference some nights, so that was hard. “

Blitzkrieg Brad

And to end with a bit of levity, I give you Brad Marchand: