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OK, so now that we’re here, let me admit it: I thought that
Matt Beleskey would be the worst signing of the entire 2015 unrestricted free agent class. I said that the 27-year-old should come with every red flag imaginable, and that he was a total ‘buyer beware’ signing. That thought process came with the belief that Beleskey would be in search of a contract that’d come with a cap-hit of $5 million (if not more) per season following a 22-goal season in which he shot an unsustainable 15.2 percent.
In a market short on goal-scorers in a league always in need of them, I thought that there would be some sucker out there that would make his contract the next laugher in a joke bin that’s featured
Ville Leino’s disastrous deal in Buffalo and
David Clarkson’s contract in Toronto (now Columbus). But as the ink begins to dry on Beleskey’s five-year, $19 million contract with the Boston Bruins, I have to be honest and say that I’m coming around on what
Don Sweeney is selling.
“Obviously, there was a few twists and turns to be able to get to that position, but very, very excited when we had the opportunity to formalize things,” Sweeney said on Wednesday night. “A lot was thrown at Matt [Beleskey] from a bunch of different directions, and he was incredibly patient because I think he felt that there was a real good opportunity here, and I think both sides realized that once we were able to get it lined up accordingly that we were equally as excited to make sure it happened.
“[Beleskey] was always identified as one of the top free agents in the market for us. Obviously, he had a breakout year, he had a very, very strong playoff that he followed up from a breakout year offensively, goal-production wise; his style of play was something that we identified that we were missing in our group; and it was just a real good opportunity to pursue a player that we coveted.”
Sweeney’s words do not change Beleskey’s numbers, of course. He still shot at what’s been universally accepted as an unsustainable percentage, and his previous career-high in goals was 11. He, like anybody else would, also benefited from skating with some favorable centermen in 2014-15 between
Ryan Getzlaf and second-line center
Ryan Kesler. And over the last three seasons, Beleskey’s points per 60 minutes at five-on-five take a staggering drop (they’re sliced by more than half, actually) when playing on a line without the otherworldly Getzlaf. These are facts.
But the Bruins clearly seem to feel that Beleskey -- a career 9.9% shooter -- is coming into his own as an NHL player and that the 22-goal scorer Beleskey is closer to reality than the numbers indicate. Sweeney and the Bruins believe in Beleskey’s ability to get to both the open ice and ‘dirty areas’ of the offensive zone to make things happen, and that that will, of course, lead to more goals.
In Boston, he’ll get the minutes to make that happen, too.
Beleskey is the obvious go-to on a top-line left-winger post since vacated on the B’s roster by the
Milan Lucic to Los Angeles Kings trade less than a week ago. And while the Bruins do not have a Getzlaf-esque center, Beleskey’s potential impact on a top-six featuring
Patrice Bergeron and
David Krejci leads credence to the possibility of a sequel in terms of the Windsor, Ont. native’s production from a year ago.
“The chance to play with those guys is awesome. They’re two great players, premier centers in the NHL and they both move the puck extremely well,” Beleskey said yesterday. “I obviously like to shoot the puck and go to the net. You watch the way that they can create plays and they’re both great in the faceoff circle, it’s a great opportunity to have the chance to play with them. And you have young guys like [Ryan] Spooner coming up.. So it’s just exciting to be able to come to a team like that.”
And with the Bruins, a historically efficient possession team, Beleskey will get the puck on his stick.
That alone makes the financial risk -- a $3.8 million cap-hit for the next five years (and a no-trade clause in the first two) -- worth it for the Black and Gold. If Beleskey puts up another 20-goal plus season and serves an effective game-changing body alongside Krejci and (maybe)
Brett Connolly on Boston’s revamped top line, then that cap-hit is a legitimate bargain for a Boston club with few of ‘em. But if he regresses towards a 12-to-18 goal talent, that figure is not too far off from the going rate for free agent third-liners in today’s NHL. The latter is an obviously undesirable path for the Bruins, but it wouldn’t be anything close to a cap-crippling contract (like the one I expected him to get).
Banking on Beleskey building off last year is a worthwhile gamble versus the alternative. That, of course, was paying $6 million to Lucic for 2015-16, signing him for anywhere from $7.25 to $8 million per season in his next contract, and hoping that his production came back around to where it was when the Black and Gold were an Eastern Conference powerhouse. Sweeney and the Bruins, justifiably so, appeared to have their doubts about the realistic possibility of that becoming a reality in the long term.
But most of all, it just sounded like Beleskey
wanted to don the Spoked-B. I mean, while it means nothing in the grand scheme of things, he changed his Twitter picture to an old school, Neely-era Bruins logo and bio to ‘Boston Bruin’ before the signing was even confirmed by the club.
“That, to me, now, is what the entire focus is about,” Sweeney admitted in his teleconference last night. “It’s about wanting to be a Boston Bruin, and hitting your high side to win.”
There’s no doubt that Beleskey, an Anaheim Duck throughout his entire career, wanted to be here, too.
“Boston’s always been a team that I’ve watched. Obviously, the Big Bad Bruins has been something I’ve loved as a player and as a fan of the game,” Beleskey said. “Guys like Cam Neely you watch as a kid, you look up to. An Original Six team with an amazing fan base. I actually got to play there for the first time in my career last year and it was just a great feeling playing in that building, and I’m extremely excited to wear the ‘B’ on my chest this season and for the next five years.”
Beleskey turned down a substantial contract offer from the Ducks before the start of free agency, too, so while the money could have been greater elsewhere, there seemed to be a definite allure to Boston.
“I’ve never been traded through junior or professionally, I’ve always been with the Ducks so I’ve never really gotten to see what other situations and teams are like, but it was eye-opening to get out there and see some teams,” Beleskey, originally drafted by the Ducks in the fourth round in 2006, added. “The fact that Boston showed so much interest in me and really wanted to have me, it’s a great feeling being able to come to a team that I’ve always looked at as a great place to play and a great city.”
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 • 
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