NHL Notebook: Bruins prospects embody size, skating and an ever-evolving philosophy on the blue line

It wasn't hard to discern a few trends among the defense groups at the Bruins' development camp last week. 

Among the 10 young blue-liners looking to leave strong impressions on the Boston brass, the average height was 6-foot-3 and the average weight was 199 pounds. 

The slightest two among the crop were Ty Gallagher (6-foot, 187 pounds) and Ethan Ritchie (6-foot, 196 pounds). Seven of the other eight stood at least 6-foot-3, 190 pounds with the remaining one, Jackson Edward, coming in at 6-foot-2, 194 pounds. Ryan Mast (6-foot-5, 213 pounds) and Kristian Kostadinski (6-foot-5, 214 pounds) were the leaders in the clubhouse. 

The first trend, size, was easily discoverable, especially when up against some of the smaller forwards in camp during the battle drills and scrimmage. 

It's easy to see why. 

Four of the last five Stanley Cup champions have had an average height of at least 6-3 among their regulars on defense. The loan outlier, the 2022 Colorado Avalanche, stood 6-1. Four of the five most recent winners averaged at least 210 pounds on their blue lines. The Avs, again the black sheep, were an average of 206 pounds. Even if Colorado was the runt of the litter, the defense group was not slight at all. 

The 2023 champion Vegas Golden Knights, most recently, serve as an excellent case study in the need for heft on the blue line:

Alex Pietrangelo: 6-3, 215
Shea Theodore: 6-2, 197
Alec Martinez: 6-1, 210
Brayden McNabb: 6-4, 215
Nic Hague: 6-6, 230
Zach Whitecloud: 6-2, 207

Average: 6-3, 212

I took a fuller look at the remaining four blue lines in a recent notebook. With the NHL being perhaps the most copycat league of any other in North American sports, count the Bruins among the pupils taking a glance at the test answers of some of the brightest students in their class. 

With the departure of Connor Clifton (5-11, 190) and the arrival of Kevin Shattenkirk (6-0, 212), Matt Grzelcyk (5-10, 176) is now the only sub-6-footer in Boston's defense group. In a bigger package, Shattenkirk might fit the best of both worlds between Clifton, the biggest 5-11 you'll find, and Grzlecyk, strictly a smaller and mobile puck-mover. 

In the system, only recent trade acquisitions Ian Mitchell and Reilly Walsh as well as 2019 fifth-rounder Roman Bychkov stand below 6 feet, all coming in at 5-11. 

The depth chart is bulking up. 

Trend No. 2 was evident from the start of Monday's first session: skating. 

Something I noted at the end of camp, skills work was a major point of emphasis throughout the five days at Warrior Ice Arena. Chief among the skills was skating. 

The Bruins' development staff put the prospects through the paces of edgework, especially in tight spaces and radiuses. For the defense group, backward skating and working on edges down the length of the sheet ate up much of the on-ice sessions.

Boston is waging a quasi-war against crossovers.

"I mean the game's changing. It's a lot faster. So obviously skating is a big part of that, and just being able to match the forward's speed going backward, right? It's hard," Gallagher told BSJ. "There's a lot of fast forwards now and you know, just limiting the crossovers, limiting all the extra effort that needs to be put in going backward is definitely all the tips and tricks that they're giving us."

The rising junior at Boston University noted the focus put on limiting crossovers in order to maintain balance and body positioning, 'C' cutting the whole way home. 

"It's more just shuffling, right? Just keeping your feet under you and staying square," Gallagher explained. "Once you crossover, that forward is going to cut back and expose you. So it's just keeping your feet under you and limiting the motion a little bit."

Gone are the days of having six redwoods making up a defense. 

Not that every Stanley Cup winner will have a Cale Makar as a sort of rover on the backend, but whether it was Colorado, Vegas, Tampa Bay, St. Louis and so on, it wouldn't have been unreasonable to expect most of the defensemen on each squad to be able to contribute in both ends of the ice. The ability to both snuff out an opposing attack, then jumpstart a breakout, whether with a quick first pass or a powerful set of strides up the ice, has never been more important. 

That's not to say the Bruins are now beginning to pull themselves out of the dark ages of stay-at-home trees on defense. Charlie McAvoy (6-1, 209 pounds), Hampus Lindholm (6-4, 215 pounds) and Brandon Carlo (6-6, 218) are perfect examples of hard defenders who can move the puck. 

Boston is trying to strike the right balance between size and mobility on the backend, just as those recent winners and other copycats around the league are at least attempting to perfect, too. 

It starts with a malleable philosophy when it comes to player development on defense. 

“I think where it evolves is, we don’t want to tell guys... we’ll never say you’re a stay-at-home defenseman,” player development and scouting assistant Danielle Marmer said. “A play can’t die on your stick, so you have to have some offensive capability to continue that play and sustain offensive-zone pressure and be able to join the rush, make a play. 

"But there’s so much value in a defender who can be hard and physical and just move the puck quickly."

The Bruins are trying not to pigeonhole any one player into a singular career arc that will define them for the next decade of his days as a professional. Some may already show signs of the qualities they'll embody as they progress through the ranks, while others may eventually find themselves having to adopt a new style to make it as a pro. 

It's something you see in veteran players, too. Shattenkirk, once one of the league's premier offensive defensemen, is now making his way as a third-pair role player, trusted in both ends of the rink. Despite his recent murkiness off the ice, Valeri Nichushkin, originally drafted 10th overall in the hopes of blossoming into an elite goal-scorer, now plies his trade as one of the league's better two-way wingers. Going back to defense, former fifth overall pick Luke Schenn quickly fell short of being a franchise defenseman, but has continued to find work as a hard-nosed leader on third pairs. 

At the developmental level, the process often comes down to evaluating a player's strengths before trying to gently guide him in the right direction 

"I think the identity piece of this game... if they're a younger player, you don't want to tell him that you're gonna be this kind of player, right? Like you want to five them the opportunity to just show us what they're capable of doing," Marmer said. "As they get older, you can tell, like based off a player's size. ... Typically, those big defenders, you're not expecting a lot of offense from them. So those things kind of come through on their own as a player spends a little bit more time and gets a little bit older. ... That's a big part of the job, helping them find what the best path is to get to the NHL or to get to play a long career.

"Sometimes, young guys might think they're an offensive defenseman when really, we see them as a hard, strong defender and puck-mover. So, it's a little bit of a balance about letting a player find his own identity, but also us helping them, like 'this is going to be the best path for you.'"

It's what makes Mason Lohrei (6-4, 204) – who many in Boston hope will one day exemplify each of the above qualities, given his frame, reach, skating, hockey sense and shooting ability – such an "anomaly," according to Marmer. Still, Lohrei is trying to find the right blend between his offensive prowess and defensive responsibilities as he'll soon make his way as a first-year pro, eying a spot in the NHL straight out of training camp.

“I think that's something we have to keep telling our guys that we kind of put in that puck-mover identity bucket. ... Don’t feel like you have to jump up in the play every time and be this super offensive defenseman," Marmer said. "There’s a few guys who are special and can do it that way, but there’s plenty of opportunity and jobs in the NHL for a guy who can just be a really physical, hard defender, and move the puck quick.”

Marmer thrice mentioned blue-liners who can defend hard and move the puck, and recent champions have been chock full of them on their defenses.

In a game that gets faster with each passing day, those bare minimums at the NHL level have become the equivalent of a Bachelor's degree in the corporate world, a requirement with each job vacancy. 

There will always be an opening for that type of defenseman in this copycat league. 

Cassidy brings Cup back to Massachusetts

The Stanley Cup was back in Massachusetts this week for Jack Eichel and Bruce Cassidy's days with the Cup.

Eichel celebrated with thousands of locals at Skate 3 in Tyngsborough on Friday before retiring to "chug beers" with family and friends. Meanwhile, Cassidy had been busy with the Cup, himself, first bringing it to Milton on Thursday to help launch the Cassidy Murray Foundation, remembering the 13-year-old killed in a 2022 boating accident in Aruba. Shannon Cassidy, Bruce's daughter, and Cassidy Murray were best friends from school. The Murrays and Cassidys remain family friends. 

Cassidy ended his day on Thursday by heading to Cape Cod with the Cup. Ray Bourque and Bobby Orr were among those in the throng of family and friends at the celebration.

Appearing on the Greg Hill Show on WEEI before Thursday's packed day, Cassidy even tried to set the record straight on his firing from the Bruins last summer, brushing against the notion that veterans like Patrice Bergeron could have vouched for him to help him keep his job.

“I don't know – they're gonna have opinions and should, and I don't put it on Bergy or any one player here,” Cassidy said. “That was a management decision, I feel. That's how I looked at it. I've remained close with some of those players, and we'll always have a friendship. They played hard for me and our staff in Boston, so I don't look at it that way. I just feel like Donny [Sweeney] and Cam [Neely], they felt they needed a different voice. I think that's what they came out and said. At the time, I disagreed, but that was their call."

Obviously, Cassidy got the last laugh when Boston bowed out early after a historic season with Jim Montgomery and Vegas marched to the Cup. 

"It worked out great for me," Cassidy added. "So, at the end of the day, I think it was just their right to do that.”

Foligno still not over Game 7 scratch

Nick Foligno had a major bounceback season for the Bruins in 2022-23, enjoying his best year since the COVID-shortened 2019-20 season. Foligno had 10 goals and 26 points in the regular season for Boston before adding a goal and two helpers in six playoff games. 

He was a healthy scratch for the B's Game 7 loss to the Florida Panthers, a decision that was not well-received by the veteran winger at the time. The 35-year-old – who waited to enter the Bruins locker room at Warrior until media had filed out on April 30, perhaps worried about what he might say in front of a microphone – remains unhappy with the decision.

“That’s something you don’t prepare yourself for, or even think is gonna happen,” Foligno said on the Cam and Strick Podcast. “I mean, that’s something Monty and I discussed — and I’ll keep that private — but it didn’t sit well with me. I think he knows that. It never will. When you’re a competitor, this is the time of year you play for. That one didn’t really sit well and never will.”

“That was hard, especially to see your team go out there and play and you’re dying to be a part of it. It’s just one of those games. It’s do or die, so those are the ones you dream about and expect to be on the ice for. It’s unfortunate it happened, but that’s something that I’ve come to peace with it, at least in talking to Monty about it. We’ve moved on, but it’s something that I hope to never have happen again.”

Coupled with the sting of losing out to compete for the Stanley Cup with the loaded team that Boston had, it's no wonder Foligno may perpetually be bothered by having to watch from the ninth floor at TD Garden. Like anyone else, he still can't believe the Bruins fell short.

“At the end of the day, we didn’t get the job done,” he said. “It’s gut-wrenching because we had probably the best team I’ll ever play on... or maybe ever. I give Sweens a ton of credit. We had one of the best teams I think you’re gonna see in a long time, the way it was assembled. The depth and the overall look of our group, we just had no weaknesses, and it’s mind-blowing that we didn’t get it done.”

Alex Galchenyuk out in Arizona less than two weeks after signing

The Coyotes placed Alex Galchenyuk on unconditional waivers for the purposes of termination on Thursday after learning that the forward was arrested in Scottsdale on July 9 on a hit and run involving property damage. 

There were no injuries, but according to The Athletic's Katie Strang, Galchenyuk was brought up on a laundry list of charges, including private property hit and run, disorderly conduct, failure to obey, resisting arrest and threatening or intimidating. He was arraigned on Monday.

This all came just 12 days after Galchenyuk signed a one-year, two-way deal worth $750,000 with Arizona on July 1.

The former third overall pick in 2012 has 354 points (146 goals) in 654 NHL games. Previously a 20 and 30-goal scorer with Montreal, Galchenyuk had also spent the 2018-19 and 2021-22 seasons with Arizona.

He spent most of 2022-23 in the AHL with the Colorado Eagles, the Avalanche's affiliate.