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Bruins sign Charlie Coyle & Chris Wagner; beat Senators 2-1

November 28, 2019, 10:20 AM ET [2 Comments]
Anthony Travalgia
Boston Bruins Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
Playing in your hometown is never easy. Some players are afraid of it and will avoid it,—hello Jimmy Vesey—some embrace it.

Because of how much Charlie Coyle and Chris Wagner have embraced it, and how well they’ve played on the ice, the two Massachusetts natives were rewarded with contract extensions Wednesday afternoon.

Coyle’s six-year extension will keep him under contract through the 2025-26 season and come with a $5.25 million cap hit. Wagner’s deal is for three-years with a cap hit of $1.35 million.

Last season was Wagner’s first in Boston after the Walpole native spent five seasons between the Anaheim Ducks, Colorado Avalanche and New York Islanders.

Coyle was one of the Bruins two trade deadline additions last February as the Weymouth native was traded from Minnesota in exchange for Ryan Donato.

“Charlie and Chris, we’re really excited to have them for the foreseeable future. I think Charlie came in and fit in very nicely with our club last year, and now you’re seeing the versatility of him as a player, going up the lineup, sliding over and supporting a guy like Jack Studnicka last night in his first game,” General Manager Don Sweeney said Wednesday prior to the Bruins 2-1 victory over the Senators in Ottawa.

“And Chris brings elements that we really respect. Obviously we play the bottom part of our lineup and trust it, zone starts, and he’s a big part of that line.”

Coyle perfectly fits what the Bruins are looking for in a center. His big frame makes it easy for him to win puck battles and he uses his size to dominate puck possession.

With Coyle locked in for the next six years, the Bruins have the depth behind Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci, and an eventual replacement for their one-two punch.

With injuries to Bergeron and other wingers this season, Coyle has also succeeded playing on the wing when asked to do so.

With Krejci looking at unrestricted free agency next summer and the Bruins needing to find new contracts for others like Torey Krug, and DeBrusk, among others, the signing of Coyle gives the Bruins some protection down the middle should Krejci leave Boston after next season.

I’m a big fan of Wagner and what he brings to the table on a nightly basis. Often he and his line will see heavy minutes against other team’s top lines and Wagner and company get the job done. He’s physical, has no problem putting his body on the line to block a shot, and chips in offensively here and there.

He’s your perfect fourth line winger.

“They’re so ingrained in the community of Boston as well, they’re hometown guys,” added Sweeney. “They clearly want to be here, they understand the pressures associated playing with the Bruins and they’re really good teammates.”

Wagner and Coyle have a history playing together, so it’s only fitting the two signed contract extensions on the same day, allowing them to play together some more. The duo spent two seasons together in the EJHL as members of the South Shore Kings.



As exciting as Wednesday’s news was for the pair of forwards and the Bruins organization, the Bruins had a hockey game to win, looking for their fifth straight win and second in as many nights.

Skating against a surprising Senators team that had won seven of their last 10 entering Wednesday. The Bruins were dominated for the game’s first 40 minutes. Had it not been for a rested and sharp Tuukka Rask, it’s hard to see the Bruins walking out of Ottawa with the two points they did end up earning.

A night after Jaroslav Halak stood tall in the first period of an 8-1 win in Montreal, Rask made 33 saves, in a game where he didn’t find much help in front of him until the third period.

"Our goalies have been good all year. We're not worried about them, they're solid. The best tandem in the league in our opinion,” said head coach Bruce Cassidy. “Tuukka was certainly our best player, certainly early on. He made the saves he needed too and a couple late.”

But thanks to third period goals by Brad Marchand, and the game-winner from captain Zdeno Chara, the Bruins enter Thanksgiving riding a five-game win streak.

Entering the third period scoreless, the Bruins looked to break the scoreless tie on a two-on-one featuring Anders Bjork and the newly extended Wagner, but after Bjork lost an edge, sliding into the Senators goal, the Sens were off in transition, a rush that ended with Thomas Chabot beating Rask for Ottawa’s lone goal of the night.

But as the Bruins have often done this season, they quickly answered with Bjork helping the cause.

Sticking with the play in the offensive zone, Bjork cycled along the wall and found a streaking Marchand who beat Senators’ goalie Anders Nilsson five-hole, tying the game at one.

Marchand’s goal was his fourth in as many games, and seventh goal in his last seven games.

Shortly after Marchand’s goal, the Bruins grabbed their first lead of the night on Chara’s rocket of a shot, his fifth goal of the season which matches his goal total from a season ago.

After Jack Studnicka made an impressive NHL debut in Montreal Tuesday night, the Bruins elected to give Brandon Gaunce a crack at game action over Studnicka as Wednesday would have been his fifth game in six nights thanks to the crazy schedules of the American Hockey League.

Gaunce was strong on the puck, making a nice play to find Chara on the game-winner.

"It was a good forechecking shift from our line," said Gaunce. "Nordy [Joakim Nordstrom] found me in the middle and I felt some pressure from my backside so I assumed that my guy was coming down from Zee's point. He was in the right spot, and obviously he hammered it home."

As the Bruins enjoy a day of family, friends and food, they have a lot to be thankful for. It’s been one heck of a start to the 2019-20 season so far. One that has seen the Bruins earn a ridiculous 78% of possible points through their first 25 games.



The Bruins will look to extend their win streak to six Friday afternoon when they host the New York Rangers at TD Garden.

Happy Thanksgiving to you all!
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