After two games, we are a third of the way through the preseason schedule and the Bruins are still something of a mystery.
But some things are coming into focus and roster decisions – some tough ones – will have to be made in the not-too-distant future.
Here are a few thoughts and observations gleaned from the first week of camp:
* John Beecher has his work cut out for him to make this team. On Tuesday, he coughed up the puck at the blue line and it led to a goal against. He had no shot attempts or hits recorded and was minus-2 in 11:50 of icetime. The fourth line is projected to consist of Mikey Eyssimont, Sean Kuraly and Mark Kastelic. I can’t see him pushing any of those players out and he doesn’t have the scoring touch to play any higher in the lineup. He doees have some things working in his favor that weree not on display on Tuesday. One thing is faceoffs – he won all three of his draws. His speed and reach can also be helpful on the penalty kill, which is a major area of major concern for new coach Marco Sturm. But the 2019 first-round pick needs to be more impactful than he was on Tuesday to earn a roster spot. The good performances of Jeffrey Viel and Riley Duran should not be discounted, either.
* One player who will be on the penalty kill is Eyssimont. He was everything that was advertised and more in Tuesday’s win 5-4 OT win in New York. He singlehandedly started the comeback on the PK, stripping Adam Fox in the Ranger zone and scoring a pretty backhander goal. He added another goal and then an assist on Marat Khusnutdinov’s equalizer. He seems determined to show that he can produce more offensively and if he can give this team more than the career-high 11 he had in Tampa, that would be great. But before the obvious third-period heroics, Eyssimont made his presence felt, drilling a Ranger into the boards early in the first period. If his personal history holds true, those three-point periods will not happen a lot. But that tone-setting physicality is something he can bring every night. The B’s young players need to emulate that readiness for battle.
* Fabian Lysell has been more engaged in his first two preseason games than he has been in past camps. He’s been a far cry from the player who was a no-show in the first preseason game last season and could not dig out of it in time to make the club. That said, a player of his ilk needs to produce numbers and he hasn’t gotten on the board. The fact that he is still waiver-exempt means he has to clearly outplay fellow bubble inhabitants that are not exempt and he hasn’t done that yet. There is still some time for him. But if he has to go to Providence he should do so with the knowledge that he’s on the cusp.
* Of all the waiver-exempt players vying for a spot, Fraser Minten looks the most NHL-ready. While his offensive production will be a work in progress, his line (and it should be noted Lysell has been with him both games) has not given up much in six periods. It was his check down low in the offensive zone that caused the turnover, giving the puck to Jordan Harris who in turn set up Eyssimont for his second goal. Minten looks like a player who can continue to learn on the job at the NHL level while not hurting the team.
* Maybe we need to see the Mason Lohrei-Charlie McAvoy combination for another preseason game, but I’m not buying it yet. If Lohrei skates with McAvoy, he will be seeing leading line matchups like he did last year and it didn’t end well for him (minus-43). The best course of action would be to play him on a third pair with the ever-reliable Andrew Peeke and let him regain some confidence instead of forcing him into the deep end again.
* The firm belief here is that Matt Poitras will be a regular NHL player some day. And who knows? Maybe that day comes by Christmas. But as a centerman he has struggled in his D-zone coverage in his first two preseason games and is minus-5. It also seems he leaves himself open for big hits at least once a game. One positive from the New York game was his improved work in the faceoff circle, winning 9-of-15 after losing 6-of-10 in the opener. But at the moment there’s not a need to rush him. Let him go to Providence and be a catalyst down there for a while.
* Pavel Zacha is already being bandied about in trade rumors and I don’t get it – at least not yet. He’s a good three-zone player who wins more than his share of battles, can play center or wing and has a reasonable cap anthem ($4.75 million) through next season. If the B’s fall out of playoff contention, then sure, the team will have to listen to offers, especially with the upcoming draft believed to be deep. He’ll have good worth in the deadline market. But even in that scenario, is it so outlandish to think the 28-year-old Zacha could be a part of the continuing rebuild?
* Here are my 13 forwards at the moment: First line – Morgan Geekie, Elias Lindholm, David Pastrnak; second line – Zacha, Casey Mittelstadt, Viktor Arvidsson; third line – Tanner Jeannot, Fraser Minten, Matej Blumel; fourth line – Eyssimont, Kuraly, Kastelic. Extra – Khusnutdinov. Khustnutdinov gets the nod over Lysell because the Russian is not waiver-exempt.
Let’s see if that holds.
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