For years, both the Bruins and their fans placed their hope in Jack Studnicka when it came to the team’s long-standing search for a top-six pivot — mapping out (largely unrealistic) expectations that a homegrown prospect could eventually replace one of Patrice Bergeron or David Krejci at the top of the lineup.
But after years of stalled development and a losing battle when it came to roster spots and waiver claims, the Bruins opted to move on from the 23-year-old center on Thursday, ultimately trading Studnicka to the Vancouver Canucks in exchange for goaltender Michael DiPietro and defenseman Jonathan Myrenberg.
For Studnicka, who appeared in just one game with Boston this year and 38 total games over four seasons, a landing spot in Vancouver seems like an ideal destination. Even though the Canucks are mired in the cellar of the Western Conference standings, injuries down the middle should give the 2017 second-round pick plenty of opportunity to carve out a spot in the NHL ranks this season.
‘We made the commitment from a roster standpoint, what direction we were gonna go,” Don Sweeney said of the decision to deal Studnicka. “And it really was an opportunity for Jack, also, to have a reset, and go to a team that was looking for a younger center that could probably grow with their group and they have significant injuries. And I think he goes in, gets a really good opportunity right away that he probably wouldn't have gotten here.”
Ultimately, that same certainty when it came to consistent minutes in the top nine was not guaranteed here in Boston for Studnicka, even in wake of David Krejci’s injury on Thursday night.
Although a situation in which Krejci is on the shelf for a week or so could have opened the door for Studnicka to draw back into the lineup, it does seem like the Bruins were more confident in shifting talent like Pavel Zacha into the center spot, rather than Studnicka.
Of course, Studnicka didn’t exactly help his cause in his lone regular-season game under Jim Montgomery — with the young forward committing two penalties and coughing up a puck that led to a Ducks goal in just 8:01 of ice time back on Oct. 20.
"It's really hard,” Montgomery said of Studnicka earning minutes on this team, given the depth at center. “I mean, we got four centers that are perfectly slotted — and if a center gets hurt, we have Pavel Zacha, who has played there for numerous games in the league. I keep talking about it, we have really good depth at every position."
DiPietro, a third-round draft pick for Vancouver in 2017, played 34 games last season with the Abbotsford Canucks in the AHL — where he was 15-14 with a 2.95 GAA and .901 SV%.
Myrenberg, drafted in the fifth round of the 2021 NHL Draft, is currently playing in the HockeyAllsvenskan in Sweden — the league just below the pro-level SHL.
The 19-year-old blueliner is a bit of a project, but was regarded as one of the Canucks’ better prospects in their pipeline. That being said, Vancouver doesn’t exactly have a stout farm system, so take those projections with a grain of salt.
Still, even if he’s a few years away from the pro game, Myrenberg’s size and skill could translate to the next level, giving Boston a young asset worth watching in an area (right-shot D) that the organization should continue to focus on (beyond the obvious need at center).
"Well, we've done a little bit of legwork there with our guys. ... (scouting director) P.J. (Axelsson) has a lot of familiarity with the player,” Sweeney said of Myrenberg. “ We've done a lot of legwork over the last few days when these conversations started to pick up and we do feel there's some upside to this player. He's young.
“He's 6-3 now, so he's got some length. His numbers at the junior level were really good, got some experience in the SHL, playing very regularly now in the Allsvenskan. So I think there's a development upside here and a positional need organizationally that we felt was a good opportunity for us. There's a little longer development time associated with this player and just a good opportunity to add to the depth of the organization."
BSJ Analysis
Yes, the Bruins did at least manage to add a useful piece to their farm system in Myrenberg, but this was more of a case of an organization needing to finally rip the band-aid off of a homegrown player whose development had clearly stalled.
Ultimately, you can point the finger at both parties when it comes to the factors that eventually made Thursday's trade inevitable.
Some of it does fall on the player to prove their worth up at the NHL ranks. And for all of the upside and flashes of talent that Studnicka did showcase, he didn’t do it nearly enough. And after that dreadful performance against the Ducks — in which Montgomery slotted him in at 3C and even pushed Charlie Coyle over to the wing — it did seem like the team was ready to move on.
Studnicka might have been productive in both the juniors and even in the AHL, but it was clear that his game had yet to fully translate up to the NHL. And even if it eventually did, it didn’t seem as though the young forward had the consistency to be an effective top-six talent.
Of course, the Bruins also are not absolved here. Given credit where it’s due, Studnicka played like he deserved a shot on the roster last preseason after a very strong training camp — but after Boston went out and filled roster spots with signings like Tomas Nosek, Nick Foligno and Erik Haula, there just wasn’t any room for Studnicka to consistently earn minutes.
The return of both Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci all but doomed Studnicka from the start this season, but Boston did have other windows in earlier seasons where they likely should have given him more rope to prove his mettle.
"His initial onboarding was really good,” Sweeney said of Studnicka. “And his trajectory was really good. During the COVID year, which was disjointed for a lot of players, he just kind of stalled just a little bit. And then it was up and down and opportunities in and out. No fault on Jack's. Maybe more fault on ours in terms of not being able to just get him fully acclimated to the level that he had been playing at in the AHL and producing.
“Tried him in different positions, playing him on the wing a little bit. Just didn't find the traction when he had his opportunities to really take advantage of it and I think Jack would admit he didn't play his absolute best hockey, even the other night. But he's a great kid, he works awfully hard. ... And I wish him nothing but the best. He's a super kid and we're grateful for all the time we got to spend with him here as a Boston Bruin.”
Ultimately, the time was right for Boston to move on. But as Studnicka is finally given more minutes elsewhere, the B’s are still stuck in the same conundrum — staring at a bleak future with little on the horizon in terms of proven, top-six talent down the middle.