When the time comes to piece together the timeline of a promising prospect and what led to their stalled development — it’s often a two-way street when it comes to doling out blame.
Of course, the onus falls on the player to make the most of the opportunities put on their plate. In that regard, Jack Studnucka failed to make a compelling argument for more ice time during his tenure with the Bruins.
After posting 72 points (22 goals, 50 assists) in his last season in the OHL, Studnicka stood as a flickering ember of hope amid a bleak future when it comes to Boston’s center pipeline — with the young pivot’s O-zone talents whetting the appetite of an Original Six franchise yearning for another blue-chip prospect to step into a featured role.
But after Studnicka ingratiated himself up at the pro ranks by leading Providence in scoring in 2019-20 (49 points in 60 games), things went south for the shifty forward.
Over the next three seasons, Studnicka largely mired in Providence for extended stretches — more than capable of thriving in top-six minutes against AHL competition, but unable to get those scoring capabilities to translate up at hockey’s highest level of competition.
In total, Studnicka appeared in 38 games with Boston over four total seasons, scoring one goal and posting seven total points during that stretch. His last game in a black-and-gold sweater was the nail in the coffin — with the forward committing two penalties and coughing up a puck that led to a goal against on Oct. 20. He finished with just 8:01 of ice time, despite getting handed the third-line center spot.
A week later, Studnicka was dealt to the Vancouver Canucks for G Michael DiPietro and D Jonathan Myrenberg — an older netminder who likely doesn’t fit into Boston’s long-term plans at the position, and a 19-year-old blueliner with some upside, but still likely a four or five-year project.
Of course, Boston also warrants some blame when it comes to Studnicka’s plateaued play.
Studnicka’s ability to log consistent minutes in Vancouver is an opportunity that was never realistic in Boston, especially once both Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci announced their respective returns in August.
But in previous campaigns, Boston failed to throw the young pivot a bone with reps in October, even after some strong preseason performances. If there was ever a time to put Studnicka in a sink-or-swim scenario, it was last season after Krejci left for the Czech Republic. But Boston then went out and plugged up a number of roster spots in free agency, dooming Stundicka to another start in AHL.
By the time Thursday’s trade was made official midway through the third period of Boston’s matchup against the Red Wings, it was clear that all parties were ready to move on.
"His initial onboarding was really good,” Don 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.”
Perhaps Studnicka can make the most of the minutes available to him in Vancouver and develop into a suitable middle-six center in due time. But for the Bruins, Thursday’s trade puts them in the same spot that they’ve been in for years — with no tangible assets in place to account for the inevitable future in which both No. 37 and No. 46 are no longer anchoring Boston’s forward corps.
Of course, dwelling on the potential doom and gloom that awaits once Bergeron and Krejci both hang up their skates might feel like me dumping a bucket of cold water during a time in which the 2022-23 Bruins are currently on a roll — with the B’s hopes of a memorable “Last Dance” coming to fruition (at least in the early going).
But make no mistake, the choices that Sweeney and the B’s make when it comes to identifying top-six talent to slot in for Bergeron/Krejci moving forward will dictate whether or not this team can either retool on the fly in the post-Bergeron era — or potentially embrace a scorched-earth rebuild and trudge through a nuclear winter of mediocrity for the next five-plus years.
Boston’s search for top-six talent will not only set the ceiling for this team’s forward corps in the years ahead, it might also be the determining factor in whether or not David Pastrnak wants to stick around in Boston for the next seven or eight years.
At this point, Pastrnak is going to get PAID next summer — be it with Boston or another team. For Pastrnak, the only uncertainty that comes with his next destination is the organization’s championship capabilities. And the last thing the star winger likely wants to do is waste his age 27-34 seasons on a team that is rebuilding and/or doesn’t have capable centers that can drive play.
For as much as Sweeney and the Bruins remain focused on this season and making the most of whatever time they still have Bergeron/Krejci in place, the hard truths on the horizon are tough to ignore, at least with this current crop of centers in place.
While names like Charlie Coyle and Pavel Zacha can serve admirably in a top-six spot when needed, it’s a lot to ask either to step into the skates of Bergeron/Krejci over the span of a full season. And even though Boston targeted pivots like Matthew Poitras and Cole Spicer during the 2022 NHL Draft, it’s fair to assume that the next wave of talent is at least another 3-4 years away.
Based on Sweeney’s comments, it seems as though the Bruins plan to leave no stone unturned when it comes to rebuilding their crop of centers for the future.
“You just never know what opportunities you could find,” Sweeney said. “Obviously, as I said, feasibly, you generally have to draft impact centers. But that was a great example of the depth of the organization — Charlie Coyle coming in and trying to grow the next guys will be important for us.
“We've got some young players in Poitras and Spicer and guys that down the road that hopefully will develop into NHL players and time will tell. I think every team in the league is trying to do the same thing in every position and we're going to be no different. So we just have to continue to do the best we can — the Providence guys are doing a fantastic job, giving guys all different situations. And you got to try and execute a trade if you have to fill the gap.”
If the Bruins have to turn to centers outside of the organization in the coming years, there should be no shortage of options.
Dylan Larkin could be a potential UFA target next summer, while the B’s will be among the many teams that will be keeping tabs on the likes of Bo Horvat, Pierre-Luc Dubois and Clayton Keller in the years ahead.
Of course, it’s one thing to covet those young pivots — and another thing entirely to relinquish the cap space / assets to bring them aboard. And with Boston already coughing up numerous draft picks over these last few seasons in an effort to put this current core over the top, it’s far from a given that the B’s will have the means in 2023 and beyond to actually pry a top-six center from another team.
Of course, some of these fears are being assuaged at the moment as this current roster continues to dominate. And if this team puts together one last run in June, perhaps any future pain will be worth it.
But as Boston once again reshuffles its prospect pipeline after sending Studnicka westward, it sure doesn’t seem like the B’s are any closer to finding some clarity down the middle once the keys to this franchise are handed to the next generation of players.
OTHER NOTES
During Sweeney’s latest presser, he was also asked about any potential progress on a Pastrnak deal. So far? Nothing really of note.
"(Agent) J.P. (Barry) and I talk almost every day, as Pasta references,” Sweeney said. “Just trying to find the common ground and hopefully we get to a point that we can announce, but we're not there, other than the updates I reference. Communication has been good, just having found the end point yet."
With Pastrnak now up to 16 points through just nine games, the Bruins are — as we’ve said countless times already — seriously playing with fire when it comes to letting their top sniper continue to raise his stock with each new multi-point game. And if Pastrnak’s reservations are indeed about the long-term vision of this team, then the Bruins might have to wait a bit longer to get a long-term commitment.
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It’s been a strong start to Jim Montgomery’s tenure behind the bench, but the B’s new coach is still looking to find more ways to ingratiate himself in the Boston sports scene. In particular, Montgomery is looking to rub shoulders with the rest of the coaches and front-office executives sprinkled across the other local “Big 5” franchises — not only to gain more experience on how to handle the pressure of this city, but how to cultivate a winning culture within his own team.
“Oddly enough, I was sitting at one of my kids’ hockey games and a friend of mine from St. Louis — whose daughter is (dating Patriots quarterback) Mac Jones — had texted me that he was standing with Belichick and he wanted to talk to me,” Montgomery said. “I was watching my kids’ game and I said, ‘Can I call him tonight,’ because I’m dying to talk to Belichick. I’d drive to the game tonight if he had five minutes for me, but no that’s something I want to build.
“I've always been a big fan of the general manager of the Boston Celtics from his days at Butler and his time coaching the Celtics, because there are a lot of similarities for both of us. Butler was recognized for a great culture and I've read articles on the culture that was in place and I've stolen some of them. We had similar ideas and concepts of how you treat people and how you deal with people and I just want to pick (Brad Stevens') brain and then what changed at the pro level, because you have to adjust."
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After two years of virtual visits, it was good to see that the Bruins were able to visit with patients at Mass General for Children and Boston Children's Hospital on Monday for the team's annual Halloween community event.
And, as is tradition, the Bruins who made the trek opted for a team-wide theme — going as Nintendo characters.
No surprise that Bergeron and Marchand were Mario and Luigi — but a special stick tap to Derek Forbort for committing to the Princess Peach costume.
IT’S A THEM! pic.twitter.com/FzjXmqoz7i
— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) October 24, 2022
"I have to stop and get gas before we go, so I might get a couple looks,” Forbort said.