After a 4-0-2 run through the 2019 preseason, the Bruins are ready to flip the page and kickoff their 2019-20 campaign in Dallas Thursday night.
The Bruins will begin their season with a four-game road trip before their home opener Saturday October 12, against the New Jersey Devils. Their contest against the Devils kicks off a three-game home stand that will also feature contests against the Anaheim Ducks and Tampa Bay Lightning.
The preseason was a positive one for the Bruins, and one that provided the Bruins with a solid look at their organizational depth. The Bruins need to trim their roster to 23 before the league’s 5:00 p.m. deadline on October 1.
The Bruins top-six and defensive pairings seemed to be set in stone, but thanks to some solid camps from several individuals, the Bruins will have some tough decisions to make as they round out the bottom-six forward group.
Here’s my guess at how the Bruins will look when the puck drops in Dallas Thursday night.
1st Line: Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron, David Pastrnak
I thought after their struggles five-on-five in the Stanley Cup Final, head coach Bruce Cassidy would be more inclined to try something different on his top line to kick off the 2019-20 season, but there has been zero indication of that.
There is no denying that the Marchand, Bergeron, Pastrnak line is one of, if not, the best in hockey. But the trio’s numbers five on five last year were not as lopsided as you may think.
*All stats five-on-five
I have no issues with keeping the Bruins big three together, especially given the offensive punch they bring to the table. But I expect that this time around, Cassidy may be quicker to pull the trigger on breaking things up on a nightly basis should the three have issues putting the puck in the net.
2nd Line: Jake DeBrusk, David Krejci, Karson Kuhlman
It sounds like David Krejci (lower-body injury) will be good to go for Thursday, giving the Bruins another solid scoring line.
“I’ve said I believe he’ll be ready, but that’ll be up to him,” Cassidy said Saturday following the Bruins preseason finally. “I’ve been told medically — by our medical staff, sorry — that he should be ready to go.”
Kuhlman was a nice fit on a line with DeBrusk and Krejci in both the regular and postseason last year. During the regular season, the trio had eight goals in 68:34 of five-on-five time together, allowing just three. It was much of the same in the playoffs, with the line combining for three goals, and allowing just one in 58:25 of five-on-five ice time.
Well, I know he [Kuhlman] can play there. I’ve seen it. I haven’t seen him with Krejci this particular preseason, but I’m comfortable with how he plays. So, we just got to make the decision, what’s best for the team. We’ve got some new players in here, did they get a look first? So we’ll talk about all of that stuff,” said Cassidy.
“But to answer your question, yes. I like the way Kuhlman plays. He complements Krejci and again, I’ve said this before, not your typical second-line right winger, because his resume isn’t as extensive, but he’s gone in there and did a good job for us and an important thing for us.”
3rd Line: Danton Heinen, Charlie Coyle, Brett Ritchie
From the eye test, to what the majority of the Bruins locker room will tell you, Coyle is poised for a breakout season, his first full one in Boston. Puck possession, creating offense and responsible play in his own zone has been Coyle’s game in the preseason, and boy has it been pretty.
“We’re encouraged by Charlie, the way he’s going offensively. Trying to attack a little more, whether he dishes or shoots, that’s decision as he gets closer to the net. Liked his game, liked his camp. Obviously he’s done a good job, the numbers back that up on the scoresheet, but also, just watching everyday in practice, he’s dialed in, ready to go,” Cassidy said.
“Maybe being here now, from the beginning, it’ll give him more confidence. I think the playoffs gave him confidence last year, a big part of us, our team’s success, scored goals.”
Having Heinen and Coyle here together is something I like, but what will Ritchie bring to the table, and how long will it last?
The 26-year old Ritchie has just 11 goals in the last two seasons he spent with Dallas, and doesn’t bring the excitement that Marcus Johansson brought last season, or even the excitement Kuhlman could bring to that line. I do think the Bruins go with Ritchie here, but I think it’s just a placeholder until Anders Bjork gets a little more seasoning in Providence.
“Well, I’ve said this before, I think Anders — he was drafted as a scoring winger. And he hasn’t been able to do that consistently at the professional level,” said Cassidy. “So we have to determine, is he going to be able to do it here? Or is he better serving in Providence, finding that part of his game? What’s going to be better for us in the long run? And do we need him here in the short term? We’ll have to make that determination, but my guess is that’s [Providence] where he will probably end up starting, to work on that part of his game.”
As long as Bjork doesn’t fall flat on his face in Providence, and is able to stay healthy, I expect to see Bjork called up before the month ends. Like Coyle, Bjork was one of the Bruins better forwards in camp and the club would love to finally get some production out of him.
4th Line: Par Lindholm, Sean Kuraly, Chris Wagner
With Joakim Nordstrom failing to appear in a single preseason game and IR likely, the Bruins will have one less fourth line option available come Thursday. Lindholm was impressive in the preseason, however. He plays a solid two-way game and brings some speed and heaviness to the table. I would not expect a whole lot from Lindholm offensively, but his ability to be a nuisance on the fourth line makes him an interesting option.
Once Nordstrom is back in the mix, he and David Backes will be knocking on the door to earn some playing time on the fourth line. Backes’ camp was another impressive one, but it looks like the Bruins want to see what Lindholm can give them before sliding Backes back into the lineup.
Scratched: David Backes
IR: Joakim Nordstrom, Peter Cehlarik
D-Pair 1: Zdeno Chara, Charlie McAvoy
No surprise here as the two came together for a very good top defensive pairing last season. With that being said, I wouldn’t count on these two being together every time they hit the ice.
McAvoy saw some time with Matt Grzelcyk in the preseason, and after seeing how well Grzelcyk handled top pair duties last season, I can see the two former Boston University Terriers getting some time together in the future.
Maybe it’s in situations where it’s late in the game, the Bruins are trailing and are in need of an equalizer that the McAvoy/Grzelcyk pair makes the most sense.
D-Pair 2: Torey Krug, Brandon Carlo
With Carlo coming off his best year as a pro, and finally getting a taste of playoff hockey, I am curious to see how he takes that next step forward in his development. I thought that the Krug, Carlo pairing was the Bruins best in the playoffs last year and they hopefully can build off that for another successful run.
D-Pair 3: Matt Grzelcyk, Connor Clifton
With neither John Moore nor Kevan Miller healthy to start the season, Clifton will get the opportunity to build off a nice start to his NHL career. With Grzelcyk’s offensive abilities and “Cliffy Hockey” being a wild card, this pairing could be an exciting one to watch.
Scratched: Steven Kampfer
IR: John Moore, Kevan Miller
Goalies: Tuukka Rask, Jaroslav Halak
The Bruins had the benefit of arguably the league’s best goalie tandem last season, and they expect that to be the case again in 2019-20. Not much to cover here.
Cassidy says the plan is to get Rask around 50-55 starts, but obviously, things could change.
“I think you guys know by now I usually tell you in the morning who’s starting, so I've given you a little tip on getting too ahead of ourselves. That's probably how we're going to do it early on is try to get into some level of rotation, like I said if one gets hot we'll go with the hot hand certainly could happen, we're going to try to balance it early on and then eventually Tuukka is probably scheduled at around somewhere between fifty and fifty-five starts, it might be less if we feel like it's better for him,” said Cassidy.
I’ll be back later this week with some individual and season predictions.
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