Be sure to 'like' Hockeybuzz on Facebook!
The 2014-15 season was a year of hits and misses for the Black and Gold.
In spite of a 96-point season, the Bruins saw their seven-year postseason streak come to an end, realized that their core may be aging faster than they originally anticipated, and ultimately saw their general manager take the fall for the club’s shortcomings. In the month of May, we’ll take a look at the season of every player on the B’s and their future with the club heading on into 2015-16.
The series continues with one of the few bright spots of 2014-15,
Loui Eriksson.
The Basics
Player: Loui Eriksson
Age: 29
2014-15 Stats: 22 goals, 47 points, plus-1 rating in 81 games played.
Contract: $4,250,000 cap-hit through 2015-16 season.
How he got here: Acquired via trade with Dallas Stars in July 2013.
Overview
Veteran winger Loui Eriksson’s first year with the Bruins did not go so hot. The main piece sent to Boston in the
Tyler Seguin trade, the Swedish winger was left the near impossible task of impressing Boston fans in a year in which he suffered two severe concussions and failed to carve out a spot on the B’s top six. (Try to tell me that those two things weren’t directly related, by the way.)
But Eriksson’s first season in the Hub ended on a relatively high note, recording four goals and 17 points in the final 23 games of the season, along with two goals and five points in 12 postseason contests. So much of that success came back to his health and the general timeframe it takes to get over concussion woes (and his Silver finish with Sweden in Sochi didn’t hurt, either). And I found that his finish, six goals and 22 points in 35 games if you count his playoff numbers, were way closer to what he could mean to the Black and Gold than the six goals and 20 points Eriksson tallied in his first 38 games in town.
That proved to be the case in 2014-15, too. In 81 games, Eriksson was a do-it-all talent for Claude Julien’s squad. His 22 goals were enough for his first 20-goal season since 2012, his 47 points were second among Boston forwards, he led that group in time on ice per game (18:28) and power-play goals (6), and his 11 power-play points were second to
Patrice Bergeron for the team lead.
“I think I took a step forward this year,” Eriksson admitted. “Last year was real tough with all that went wrong with the concussions and everything. I think this year I only missed one game so it’s good to have been healthy and been playing. I think I learned the system well and I’ve been having a good year. It’s too bad it comes up to missing the playoffs. It doesn’t really matter how much you produce.”
The B’s disappointed in the standings, no doubt, but Eriksson was an undeniable bright spot. He was perhaps the club’s most consistent forward, and really made the Boston third line a force most nights.
“I’m feeling much better this year. Been playing in all different situations and producing,” Eriksson said at the year-end media availability. “Hopefully I can build on this and we get better for next year.”
The Good
As touched on in the overview, Eriksson was such a driving force on the B’s third line with
Carl Soderberg and
Chris Kelly. And it was pretty funny to hear the argument flip from ‘Eriksson can’t produce without Soderberg’ to ‘Wow, Eriksson really brings the best out of Soderberg’. Eriksson drove possession like a first-liner, and produced like a second-liner. On the third line. He’s good.
And his results had direct results for the Bruins.
The B’s finished this season with a 13-2-6 record when Eriksson scored a goal. That’s 32 of a possible 42 points (a 76.1 point percentage). They were 23-9-9 when he had at least one point, too. That’s 55 of 82 points (a 67.1 point percentage). A pointless Eriksson left the B’s with a 17-18-5 mark. And, of course, that’s just 39 of a possible 80 points (a 48.8 point percentage). His production was key.
The Bad
In spite of the impressive basic stats and advanced figures, Eriksson’s year didn’t come without a prolonged stretch of frustration that left you wondering what you had and whether or not he’d be moved out of town (and a trade was reportedly ‘close as it had ever been’ back in December).
From Oct. 18 to Jan. 13, the 29-year-old scored just seven goals in 37 games. He found a way to produce (he had 23 points over that 37-game stretch), but in a time that needed goals, Eriksson joined the ranks of those that could not find the back of the net. His most frustrating stretch over that window came in a 23-game stretch in which the Swede lit the lamp just twice. That was brutal.
The Future
The two-way winger is entering the final year of a contract that comes with a $4.25 million cap-hit and honestly should be safe from trade rumors, if you ask me. With Carl Soderberg expected to walk as a free agent this summer, Eriksson should find a role within Boston’s top six this year, which would come with a bump in production (dare I even say 60 points?) and that’s something that the B’s could certainly use. And to be honest, I’m not taking many calls on Eriksson after his impressive four goal, 10-point performance in eight games at the World Championships in the Czech Republic this spring.
Previous Bruins Year in Reviews
Gregory Campbell
Brett Connolly
Milan Lucic
Reilly Smith
Danny Paille
Ty Anderson has been covering the Boston Bruins for HockeyBuzz.com since 2010, is a member of the Pro Hockey Writers Association's Boston Chapter, and can be contacted on Twitter, or emailed at Ty.AndersonHB[at]gmail.com
Boston Bruins Blogger •Bruins Feature Columnist • 
Join the Discussion:
»