Its been awhile since my last post, and even though the off-season is starting to wind down for the Bruins, there has been a lot of news and rumblings coming from the Hub in the last week or so. In my best effort to keep this short and to the point, here is a summary of the most recent news.
1) Wheeler was awarded a $2.2 million dollar salary through arbitration and the Bruins elected to accept the award and sign the young power forward. This means Wheeler will have a 1-year contract until next year when he will once again become an UFA and be arbitration eligible. For the Bruins, this contract will be a nice "feeling out" process to determine what the future holds for Wheeler. After a solid rookie campaign, Wheeler had somewhat of a lapse last year with his production dropping just slightly. The whole offense was in shambles last season as injuries really hurt both the wing and center position. Wheeler is certainly a player that will benefit from having consistent lines and chemistry with his center. Look for him to have a strong season while playing more physical and utilizing his big frame in front of the net.
2) The second overall pick Tyler Seguin has officially signed on with the Bruins. The rookie inked a 3 year entry level contract for $900,000 with bonuses that can reach up to $3.65-$3.75 million. This is almost an identical contract that his counterpart Taylor Hall received from Edmonton. Seguin has been nothing short of impressive in the early goings through development camp and has shown a great sense of maturity when dealing with the various Boston media outlets. While Seguin remains reserved and only slightly optimistic about making the Boston roster, it is almost with 100% certainty that Tyler will be playing in Boston next season. It would be shocking if Chiarelli sent him to play another season in Plymouth. He will be a big contributor to the B's this season... I'm predicting 18 goals, 35 assists. I will check back in on these numbers at the end of the season.
3)With the departure of Craig Ramsay to Atlanta (all the best and good luck) the B's needed to bring in another coach for the upcoming season. The B's reunited Julien with his former assistant from Montreal Doug Jarvis. The saying "keep your friends close and your enemies closer" comes to mind. Over the past three years, Boston has added coaching or players (Julien & Ryder, Begin, and now Jarvis). The B's always seem to lock in on the players and personnel they are familiar with, and hopefully Jarvis plays out better than Ryder and Begin did. Jarvis' will help to bolster the defensive system the B's have in place.
4) Savard rumors have slowly but surely quieted down. It no longer looks like #91 will be traded away for salary cap concerns. (Insert applause here). Needless to say, the Bruins still have a logjam when addressing the cap. Sturm's injury will help the Bruins to address the problem in the short term as he will begin the season on the long term injured list. This means his salary will not count against the B's until he is activated. It remains to be seen what the Bruins will do in order to become cap compliant. It seems unlikely that Thomas can be moved, even more so now that Chicago didn't resign Anti Niemi. A team needing a goalie would most likely go with the younger, less expensive and fresh off the Stanley cup model goalie over the aging, recently injured salary cap nightmare Thomas would bring. Besides, I think having Thomas on the roster is a good thing for the B's as there will be an open competition this year for the starting spot. Again, this inevitably brings the spotlight down on Ryder. I think this is the player the Bruins can move as they upgraded the roster on RW with both Seguin and Horton, but don't expect much back for Ryder.
If I was Pete, I would try to package Ryder and Zach Hamill for either a young defensive prospect or a 2nd round pick. Hamill has had a difficult time adjusting to the pro game, and the depth the B's have at center both in Boston and Providence make the project expendable. If they don't include Hamill, perhaps a Ryder and Hunwick deal would make sense as well as it would free up over $5.5mil in cap space.
Either way, the Bruins will not be getting an NHL player back in a deal as the roster seems to be over-filled currently. They need to dump cap space and pick up what they can for the future. In coming seasons, the B's will be serious contenders, so a move like this can help solidify positions we may have to fill due to upcoming free agents and should not be taken lightly.
4)I have read recently comments on other sites with readers and fans asking about Satan and Begin and the likelihood of them being back next year. FORGET IT. Unless the veterans want to play in Providence and dine on Federal Hill, you won't be seeing them back next year. Not enough room, not enough production from either, and the upgrades in the roster would leave them with little to no ice time.
Both the Bruins and baby Bruins will begin camps soon, and the seasons are starting in less than 2 months. This is an exciting time of year as hockey is starting again, the fall fishing starts to turn on, and Sam Adams Oktoberfest starts to flow at your favorite drinking establishments.
Look for my take on pre-season rankings sometime soon and then a preview of each division as the rosters start to finalize.
GO B's
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