NHL Notebook: So … what’s next for the Bruins?

So, to recap….

Over the last two weeks, the Bruins announced that they:

• Will not have their top left wing, offensive conduit and on-ice sparkplug in Brad Marchand available for at least the first two months of the 2022-23 season. Along with Marchand being on the shelf, the 34-year-old veteran faces a daunting uphill climb after going under the knife for procedures on BOTH of his hips.
• Will not have their top defenseman (and arguably, top player) in Charlie McAvoy for an even longer stretch of time — with the franchise blueliner expected to not return until at least early December while recovering from shoulder surgery.
• Will not have another top-four option on defense (and a temporary top-pair replacement) in Matt Grzelcyk, who is not expected back until November after undergoing surgery to fix a dislocated right shoulder.
• Will likely not have one of their most predictable trade chips in Mike Reilly in play this offseason, not with his value now hampered by offseason surgery to repair a tendon in his right ankle — and the simple fact that the B’s might need him in the lineup now to account for Grzelcyk and McAvoy’s absences. 

Oh … and the Bruins still don’t have any clarity on Patrice Bergeron’s future. And they’ve got just a few million bucks in cap space to retool this roster on the fly.

Other than that, how was the play, Mrs. Lincoln? 

There’s no other way to sugar-coat it — the Bruins are looking at some rough months in October and November. Even if Bergeron was to come back (a scenario that isn’t exactly tempting for the veteran pivot given the supporting cast he’ll have to work with in the fall), the Bruins are probably going to be digging out of a hole in the Atlantic Division standings in the early going.

Even if the Bruins get Marchand, McAvoy and Grzelcyk back and playing 60+ games, they are still going to have the odds stacked against them if they're hanging around the .500 mark come Thanksgiving.

After all, Thanksgiving often stands as the first barometer for a team’s outlook, as @HockeyStatMiner notes below:

Yes, there are plenty of teams that are more than capable of catching fire and mounting second-half runs. But it’s one thing to be the hot-and-cold 2021-22 Bruins and hovering around a wild-card spot in November — and a 2022-23 Bruins group that could be sinking in the standings with so many franchise stalwarts on the shelf.

And if Bergeron isn’t in the picture? Woof. 

So what exactly is the best route forward for the Bruins?

If you had asked me at approximately 4:25 p.m. on Friday afternoon (right as I was in the midst of putting the finishing touches on a now-defunct NHL Notebook advocating for a David Krejci return), the only contingency plan that was going to be off the table was a legitimate rebuild.

Running it back? If Bergeron and Krejci are back — might as well give it a go and see where the chips fall, especially with years of poor drafting giving Boston few fall-back options down the middle.

Retooling on the fly? Also a very tangible option, with the Bruins tasked with clearing cap space this summer and looking outside the organization for help at center, be it in free agency or via trade. 

Hell, even if Bergeron hung up his skates BUT Krejci was interested in returning … you ink the veteran to a one-year deal, stick him between David Pastrnak and Taylor Hall and augment the rest of your roster around the already solid core in place of Marchand, McAvoy, Jeremy Swayman, Hall, Hampus Lindholm and more. 

At the very least, you can still contend in some manner in 2022 while giving yourself more time to plan for a 2023 season when a lot more money comes off the books.

Living in the past can be a dangerous game, especially in sports.

When one fruitful chapter of a team closes, it’s often painful to look ahead to an uncertain future — with short-sighted measures that grasp onto the glory of yesteryear often providing a temporary, cathartic sense of relief. 

After arguably holding onto the original “Big 3” era of Bird, McHale and Parish for a few years beyond their contention window (and not repeating the benefits of looking to the future) — the Celtics learned their lesson when they shipped Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett to Brooklyn after it was clear that run was on its last legs.

It was a brutal slap of reality at the time, but tearing off the band-aid then has put the Celtics in the position that they’re in right now — just three wins away from Banner 18.

Perhaps that line of thinking — and the risks that come with not taking the necessary steps to orchestrate the next era of success for their favorite club — is why some Bruins fans have scoffed at any notion of Krejci donning a black-and-gold sweater in 2022-23.

But my rationale (at least at the time) for a Krejci reunion and wanting to embrace at least one more run with some veteran pivots down the middle was rooted in the fact that the desire to completely uproot and rebuild this team wasn’t feasible — not with players like McAvoy, Swayman and others in place.

Sure, you can trade a Craig Smith or a Jake DeBrusk for futures, but you’re not exactly sinking yourself to the same tier as cellar-dwellers like Arizona or Montreal. You might be putting yourself in play for a lottery pick, but you’re sure not going to be in the running for a Connor Bedard, Matvei Michkov or Adam Fantilli.

Now … that scenario does become a bit easier to digest, given that the B’s know that key cogs like Marchand, McAvoy and Grzelcyk are going to be out of the picture for a few months, along with Bergeron’s uncertain future, of course.

At the very least, a path is now presented to the B’s if they do indeed want to rip off the band-aid, take their lumps and try to secure a top draft pick (or two).

It’s a strategy that offers plenty of risks when it comes to blowing things up, but also dangles forth a pretty tempting endgame — in which a franchise-augmenting prospect like a Bedard or Fantilli is added to a still promising core of a McAvoy (healthy in 2022-23), Swayman, Pastrnak (if he’s re-signed), Fabian Lysell, Mason Lohrei and many others.

But if that’s a path that the Bruins want to take, there can be no half-measures. Bergeron could retire and the B’s might stumble a great deal in October/November with Marchand, McAvoy and others sidelined. You stand pat, take those punches, sell off a Smith or another expiring contract at the deadline, and you’ll be in play for a lottery pick … and likely land on No. 11-13. 

No, if the Bruins really want to bottom out for one year in hopes of a very, very short turnaround, that’s going to require Don Sweeney and Co. dismantling at least some of this entrenched supporting cast in order to increase Boston’s odds of a top-5 pick. 

Marchand has stressed that he doesn’t want to play elsewhere … but is Hall ready for another rebuild? What about Lindholm, who just signed an eight-year contract?

Is Pastrnak ready to ink a long-term deal with a team looking at a few rough years ahead?

Are you ready to move a talented winger in DeBrusk for draft capital, as opposed to corresponding NHL talent? Guys like Smith, Haula, and others could be sold off in short order.  

It’s not exactly going to be pretty at the start, and it’s going to come down to the B’s ownership group accepting such a reality for the time being (something that they’ve been hesitant of for decades now).

There’s absolutely no guarantee that such a bold rebuild will work. The B’s could completely tank and the lottery fortunes just may not fall in their favor. Perhaps their hopes for a franchise savior end up turning into a Zach Hamill, rather than a Nathan MacKinnon.

At this stage of the offseason, the future of the Bruins has never been more unclear. And the best path forward? Well, that remains to be seen. 

But in wake of Friday’s news, it sure seems like just about every option has to be on the table now. 

OTHER NOTES

It remains to be seen which direction Sweeney and Co. eventually steer this ship over the offseason — but for now, you’re going to be stuck with a whole lot more speculation on Krejci and a potential return to Boston.

A season-long narrative that swirled around both Krejci and the B’s sure seems poised to carry over into this summer, with Sweeney essentially leaving the door open for Krejci if the 35-year-old pivot has any interest in playing for Boston once again after spending last season with HC Olomouc in the Czech Extraliga. 

“I certainly kept in touch with David and his camp throughout the year,” Sweeney said of Krejci. He had hard decisions to make in terms of the promise he had made to his family overall. Just ultimately decided to stay and see it through. I’m sure at some point in time if he decides he wants to return, then hopefully I get a call and we can have a conversation. But I have not gone down that path for several months. … Has to line up for a number of reasons. 

"Still looks like he values playing the game and being highly competitive and was highly productive. Seamlessly would probably fall back into knowing what our team is like and what we’re trying to accomplish, but again, it’s hypothetical for me at this point in time. I’ll cross that bridge when it’s presented.”

Krejci sure seems to be playing into the narrative of a return, offering a smile when asked by his former B’s teammate in Pastrnak about a potential reunion back in the NHL. 

From just the nostalgia angle, seeing No. 46 back on the TD Garden ice is certainly tempting, especially if he’s back in place with Bergeron as a potent 1-2 punch down the middle. And even though Krejci is getting up there in age, the playmaking center’s skillset is one that doesn’t tend to erode significantly, given that his talents rely more on his passing ability and on-ice awareness, as opposed to his speed or physicality. 

Yes, Krejci diced up lesser competition with HC Olomouc (46 points in 51 games), but he also looked like an impact talent when paired up with NHLers in the IIHF World Championships — racking up 12 points over 10 games with Pastrnak and Team Czechia.  

Ultimately, it’s going to come down to whether or not Boston wants to rebuild or retool this offseason — and that likely hinges on Bergeron’s decision. But if Bergeron does want to return, you can expect Sweeney to make a call or two to Krejci’s camp. 

______________________________

Montreal Canadiens goaltender Carey Price won the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy on Friday, which is awarded to the NHL player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication. 

Price, who didn’t play between Game 5 of the 2021 Stanley Cup Final and April 2022, was initially sidelined to open the 2021-22 campaign due to offseason knee surgery — but later entered the NHL/NHL Players' Association joint player assistance program in October.

Throughout his absence, Price was transparent and open about his struggles with substance use and his desire to confront those challenges by entering into the assistance program. 

"Over the last few years I have let myself get to a very dark place and I didn't have the tools to cope with that struggle," Price said in a statement in November. "Things had reached a point that I realized I needed to prioritize my health for both myself and for my family. Asking for help when you need it is what we encourage our kids to do. And it was what I needed to do."

Price, 34, won the award over fellow finalists in Islanders defenseman Zdeno Chara and Flyers forward Kevin Hayes (who was my vote, for the sake of transparency.)