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Time flies when you're buried on a depth chart.
It’s been four years since the Boston Bruins selected
Jordan Caron with the 25th overall pick in the 2009 NHL Draft, and it’s not unfair to Caron to suggest that it’s been four relatively uneventful years. Nor is it outlandish to suggest that 2013-14 is a make-or-break year for the 22-year-old winger. Inked to a one-year, one-way deal worth just $640,000 over two weeks ago, there’s been little to get excited about when it comes to the prospect of the Sayabec, Que. native suiting up regularly on the Bruins’ third line next season alongside
Chris Kelly and
Carl Soderberg.
Still an unproven commodity at the NHL level, Caron is simply running out of time and chances with the B's organization. The last addition to a trio of Bruins’ scouting mind-meltdowns that saw Boston select
Zach Hamill with their first pick in 2007 (eighth overall),
Joe Colborne in 2008 (16th overall), and Caron in 2009, the harsh reality of Caron’s spotty tenure with the B’s organization is that it’s been massively underwhelming given the state of not only his pick, but the Bruins’ 09 class as a whole.
The lone pick in the first two rounds for Boston in ‘09 (defensemen
Ryan Button, who was traded to Dallas as part of the
Tyler Seguin deal, was the next pick for the B’s, taken 86th overall in round three), the progression of Caron following his third full year with the Providence Bruins was -- well, nonexistent.
Recording a goal and three points in 17 games in 2013, bringing his NHL totals up to 11 goals and 25 points in 88 games over three seasons, just what’s gone wrong with Caron as a Bruin? The easy answer (or cop out depending on your point of view) could be the Bruins’ usage of Caron when he’s with the big club.
He’s rarely seen more than bottom-six ice time -- 13:47 was his tops for time on ice in 2013 -- but has his play warranted a larger role? Of course not. Especially not on a Boston club that simply doesn’t have the room for Caron to receive a larger role given their talent on the wings on lines one and two, both in the now and in previous years for that matter. In fact, forget about the thought of ever using Caron's time on ice as a valid argument for his struggles, 'cause if he's to succeed and contribute to the B's it's going to be in a bottom-six role based on his hard-nosed, crash the net style.
So, where do we turn when analyzing the frustrating inconsistencies in No. 38's play with the B's? As I’ve said countless times throughout his entire Bruins career, it seems as if Caron’s biggest obstacle has been himself and namely his battles with his own confidence.
A seemingly fragile player between the ears, it’s been the 6-foot-2 forward’s constant battle to not get discouraged when he’s passed over on the depth chart that’s prevented him from being a bonafide contributor for Boston. It’s also why he’s made the drive down 95 back to Providence about a billion times in three years, and it’s (probably) why Caron’s yet to excel at the American Hockey League level despite suiting up as one of the P-Bruins’ “veterans” in 2012-13 (though a puck to the face
did understandably slow him down midway through this past season). How else could you explain a first rounder and seemingly multifaceted player scoring a mere 27 goals and 59 points in a combined 111 games of logging significant minutes in the AHL? It’s baffling, really.
But what’s undoubtedly known, and likely made clear to Caron with his recent extension and its tame payday, is that when it comes to his new (and potential final) deal with Boston, it’s time to put those self-battles to bed and be a player for Boston, not Providence.
Slated to enter camp in tight competition for the B’s open spot on the right side of the aforementioned third line featuring Kelly and Soderberg, and expected to battle with
Matt Fraser,
Reilly Smith, and even
Jared Knight for the spot on a cash-strapped B’s squad, there’s simply not going to be any time for the Black-and-Gold to deal with a nightmarish revolving door like they were forced to following the exodus of
Benoit Pouliot last summer. In a lockout shortened, 48-game season, it was painfully apparent that
Chris Bourque, while the son of a Bruins legend, was not an adequate NHL player for the Bruins, and in a year that saw the offensive numbers for both Kelly (who obviously suffered from the aftereffects of a broken tibia) and Bruin-turned-Star
Rich Peverley come back down to this stratosphere, the Bruins’ mix-and-match styled third line undoubtedly hindered their ability to develop an identity.
In 2013-14, however, with a full camp and a spot there with Caron’s name ever-so-lightly penciled in, it seems as if it’s now or never for Caron.
But even with the backing of a coaching staff and front office willing to devote another year towards his development, can he prove to be an NHL caliber forward? You’d like to think so-- and a small sample size suggests that yes, it’s in the realm of possibilities.
When entrusted with a larger role (see:
a role) towards the end of the 2011-12 campaign by B’s coach
Claude Julien, Caron played an effective game with four goals and 10 points in his final 20 games of the season. Emerging as a noteworthy physical presence on the B’s wing, and ultimately outplaying
Shawn Thornton for a spot on the Bruins’ playoff roster, it seemed to be the proverbial big step forward fans in the Hub have longed for outta Caron’s game.
While it didn't last in 2012 and this past season, is it possible that we see the jump in '13?
As a Bruins fan, you'd have to assume so. In Boston it's tough enough to look at the 2007 Draft recap when noticing Hamill picked before names like
Logan Couture,
Ryan McDonagh, and
Kevin Shattenkirk. It's painful to see Colborne, who's just now emerging as a bottom-sixer for the Toronto Maple Leafs, picked before guys like
Jordan Eberle and
John Carlson.
And could you imagine the trifecta of witnessing yet another first rounder, Caron in this case, floundering his way out of the Boston system while guys like
Ryan O'Reilly and
Jakob Silfverberg (second round picks) continue to emerge as viable young assets for their respective clubs? It's as defeating as it comes, really.
Boston Bruins Blogger •Bruins Feature Columnist • 
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