Sports Hub Underground: Big decisions looming for the Bruins
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We’re back with another new episode of the Sports Hub Underground. The Bruins are officially back from their bye week and so are we, with plenty to talk about.
Here are the primary topics from this week’s episode:
— The Boston Bruins played arguably their worst game of the season on Tuesday night against the Calgary Flames. What can we even pull from the game as a realistic sign for the future?
— Shaky defense was probably the worst part of the Bruins’ game against the Flames. Does the group have enough to really contend?
— Bruins winger Jake DeBrusk hopes they get a contract extension done “soon.” Soon? So it’s definitely happening? Will he be worth it?
Listen above for the whole thing. And you can subscribe to the podcast in your favorite app right here at 985TheSportsHub.com.
Feb 6, 2024; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Bruins left wing Brad Marchand (63) reacts after getting a cross check in the face by Calgary Flames center Martin Pospisil (76) during the first period at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports
Here’s the full rundown…
(0:50) Opening banter
(19:05) Bruins play their worst game of the season against the Flames
(26:45) Jeremy Swayman is worthy of your criticism
(33:50) Noah Hanifin remains a possible big free-agent target for the Bruins
(44:00) Jake DeBrusk sounds closer and closer to signing an extension
(57:38) The guys pick their “Big 3” sports achievements they’d like to see in person
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Matt Dolloff is a writer and podcaster for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Check out all of Matt’s content.
Would you have made this deal for Elias Lindholm?
The Andrei Kuzmenko comp
Dec 23, 2023; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Vancouver Canucks forward Andrei Kuzmenko (96) celebrates his first goal of the game against the San Jose Sharks in the first period at Rogers Arena. (Bob Frid/USA TODAY Sports)
The most notable piece going from Vancouver to Calgary in this deal is Russian winger Andrei Kuzmenko.
A 27-year-old who can play both left and right wing, Kuzmenko waived his no-trade clause to facilitate the trade, and is in the midst of a season that’s included eight goals and 21 points through 43 games.
It almost goes without saying that it’s a steeeeeeep drop from the 39-goal, 74-point season Kuzmenko put together for the Canucks a year ago. Kuzmenko had spent part of his season in the Rick Tocchet doghouse — and man, did it feel like he was deep in there — and another issue for Kuzmenko was that he simply wasn’t the same scoring threat when not skating with Canucks superstar Elias Pettersson.
Kuzmenko, who spent his entire career in the KHL prior to jumping over last year, also this year and next at a somewhat pricey $5.5 million cap hit before hitting unrestricted free agency in 2026.
Nov 30, 2023; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Bruins left wing Jake DeBrusk (74) skates after the puck during the first period against the San Jose Sharks at TD Garden. (Bob DeChiara/USA TODAY Sports)
‘Ya know, that sounds an awful lot like Jake DeBrusk to a certain degree.
DeBrusk hasn’t been in Jim Montgomery’s doghouse the way he was in the Winchester, Mass. one owned by Bruce Cassidy, and that’s remained the case this year, even with DeBrusk’s scoring struggles in the first half of the year. And even when DeBrusk was late to a team meeting and earned a healthy scratch, Montgomery didn’t go scorched earth on him to the media, and instead stressed the standards of the organization.
But similar to Kuzmenko and Pettersson, DeBrusk has learned that life without Patrice Bergeron is a lot harder than you’d think as a scoring threat, as DeBrusk has struggled to match last year’s scoring pace (27 goals in 64 games) through the first leg of the year, with 12 goals in 47 games.
Kuzmenko does have one more year of team control compared to DeBrusk, who is a pending free agent this summer, but the salaries are relatively close, with DeBrusk at $4 million. (But, of course, that could mean everything to the Flames, who have hard a difficult time retaining talent in recent years for a number of reasons.)
Nov 9, 2023; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Bruins center Trent Frederic (11) reacts after scoring a goal against the New York Islanders during the first period at the TD Garden. (Brian Fluharty/USA TODAY Sports)
So if it’s team control the Flames prefer, Trent Frederic would indeed have checked out as an option.
In the first year of a two-year deal with a team-friendly (and then some) $2.3 million cap hit, the 6-foot-3 Frederic has shown an ability to play up and down the lineup, all three forward positions, and is currently paced for what would be new career-highs in goals (23) and points (49). He’s also paced for a career-high 141 hits, ad Frederic has already established a new career-high in assists this year, with 15.
If the Flames are indeed embracing a rebuild, Frederic is one hell of a piece for the present or the future, whether that future would be in Calgary or as a piece they eventually leverage in a larger return down the road.
But if you’re looking at DeBrusk vs. Frederic in a battle of who’s a closer comp to Kuzmenko, DeBrusk wins.
Attempting to find a Hunter Brzustewicz comp
Jan 25, 2023; Langley, BC, CANADA; CHL Top Prospects team white defenseman Hunter Brzustewicz (4) skates during the first period in the 2023 CHL Top Prospects ice hockey game at Langley Events Centre. (Anne-Marie Sorvin/USA TODAY Sports)
But here’s where things get interesting for the Bruins: I’m honestly not sure that this team has a super close, slam dunk kind of comp for defenseman Hunter Brzustewicz, who was moved from the Vancouver pipeline to the Calgary pipeline in Wednesday’s trade.
A third-round pick in 2023, the 19-year-old Brzustewicz has recorded eight goals and 69 points in 47 games for OHL Kitchener this season. His 69 points are the third-most among all OHL skaters. Not just among defensemen. But all OHL skaters. As a defenseman! (A defenseman!)
The B’s don’t have anybody posting those kind of numbers, but especially not from the backend, in their system. Hell, they don’t have any defenders doing anything close to that at the pro level.
But is anybody close?
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS – NOVEMBER 09: Mason Lohrei #6 of the Boston Bruins skates against the New York Islanders during the first period at TD Garden on November 09, 2023 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
If we want to keep this simple and boil it down to ‘best D in the system’, then first-year pro Mason Lohrei is the guy going to Calgary in a Lindholm-to-Boston trade.
Already ahead of schedule from where many thought he would be after leaving Ohio State University after two seasons (eight goals and 61 points in 71 total games for the Buckeyes), Lohrei has made 27 appearances for Boston this season, with three goals and six points over that NHL run. In Providence, the 6-foot-4 Lohrei has put up one goal and 10 points in 13 games for Ryan Mougenel’s squad.
Lohrei is also a cost-controlled asset, as he’s in the first year of his two-year entry-level that checks in at $925,000, and is not arbitration-eligible at the end of that contract.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – OCTOBER 05: Matthew Poitras #51 of the Boston Bruins skates against the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden on October 05, 2023 in New York City. (Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
But if you’re looking for a direct comparison to Brzustewicz in terms of age and OHL success, Matt Poitras would have been the guy for the Flames in talks with Boston.
While Poitras is in his first NHL season, it was just a year ago that Poitras tore up the OHL as a top-line threat for Guelph, with 16 goals and 95 points in 63 games for the Storm. The 5-foot-10 Poitras’ 79 assists were the second-most among all OHL skaters, while his 95 points were tied for the fifth-most. That’s similar production to Brzustewicz, albeit from a different position, but also as a non-first round pick (Poitras was selected with a second-round selection, No. 54 overall, in the 2022 NHL Draft).
And similar to Lohrei, Poitras is cost-controlled and team-controlled for the foreseeable future.
But, again, weighing this as Poitras vs. Lohrei, it’s certainly worth noting that the Flames currently have five pending unrestricted free agents on their NHL blue line. The Flames’ prospect pool isn’t exactly loaded on the backend, either, which would set Lohrei up as a definite want for the club. Looking at it from that scope, it feels like the Flames would’ve preferred Lohrei over Poitras.
More prospects and picks
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS – MAY 26: General Manager Don Sweeney of the Boston Bruins speaks during Media Day ahead of the 2019 NHL Stanley Cup Final at TD Garden on May 26, 2019 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
Another big move that would’ve been required from the Bruins here would’ve been the parting of yet another first-round pick from Don Sweeney’s already-barren cupboard.
Now, the Bruins are already without their 2024 first-round pick. They moved that to Detroit in last year’s deadline move for Tyler Bertuzzi (and the Red Wings have since sent that to Ottawa). It’s worth noting that that was a top-10 protected pick, and with the Bruins sitting atop the NHL standings, barring something downright catastrophic, that’s a pick that is making its way to the Senators this summer.
So, let’s say that it would’ve been a 2025 first-round pick sent to Calgary.
To recap, that would’ve meant that the Bruins traded first-round picks in 2018 (Rick Nash trade), 2020 (Ondrej Kase deal), 2022 (Hampus Lindholm trade), 2023 (Dmitry Orlov trade), 2024, and 2025. SHEESH. It also would’ve meant that the only first-round picks made by the Bruins over an eight-draft stretch would’ve been Johnny Beecher (2019) and Fabian Lysell (2021). DOUBLE SHEESH.
Sep 26, 2023; Buffalo, New York, USA; Boston Bruins defenseman Frederic Brunet (59) makes a pass during the third period against the Buffalo Sabres at KeyBank Center. (Timothy T. Ludwig/USA TODAY Sports)
On a lesser note — at least from a capital out the door standpoint — the Canucks also parted with defensive prospect Joni Jurmo in the deal for Lindholm.
A 6-foot-3 and over 200 pounds, Jurmo pops off the page as a pure athlete. But that hasn’t exactly translated to top-tier prospect status (most rankings had him listed outside Vancouver’s top 10. And he’s almost four years removed from his draft year selection (the Canucks took him with the 82nd overall pick in 2020), and he’s still playing overseas. Now, part of that may be his own decision, as well as a decision made by management, but after a while, you naturally wonder if a) he’s ever going to come over and b) if he’s good enough to come over.
On the low end of the scale for the Bruins, the comp there would likely be Jonathan Myrenberg. A fifth-round pick in 2021, Myrenberg is currently playing in Sweden’s top league. On the higher end of the spectrum, perhaps Frederic Brunet would be a ‘better’ pick for the Flames. A fifth-round pick in 2022, Brunet was one of the highest-scoring defenders in the Q during his time there, and is currently playing in Providence as a 20-year-old, with one goal and eight points in 25 games for the Baby B’s this season.
The final (hypothetical) ask from Calgary
Nov 10, 2022; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Bruins left wing Jake DeBrusk (74) and Flames defenseman Rasmus Andersson (4) battle for a rebound in front of Flames goaltender Dan Vladar (80) at TD Garden. (Bob DeChiara/USA TODAY Sports)
Piecing it all together — and in what is a true waste of time considering that Lindholm is already gone and we have no clue if the Bruins were actually in on Lindholm prior to the trade — the Bruins’ package to Calgary would’ve likely required Jake DeBrusk, Mason Lohrei, a future first, and a lower-tiered prospect.
That’s an awful lot for a Bruins team that, to be honest, has gotten by with Charlie Coyle, Pavel Zacha, and strong contributions from the bottom six at the center position. It could always be better, and the Bruins themselves would be the first to tell you that, but the center play has not been so poor that it would warrant a true ‘balls to the wall’ kind of trade like that to address the center position.
But if you were called at 4 p.m. on Wednesday and told that this is what it would’ve taken to bring Lindholm to Boston, where an extension would surely await him based on how Sweeney operates, would you have done it?
