The switch from Jim Montgomery to Joe Sacco has not stopped the almost-constant roster shuffling of Bruins general manager Don Sweeney, with Friday coming with two more roster moves from the Bruins.
And these latest moves came with one demotion and one promotion, with forward Georgii Merkulov reassigned to AHL Providence and Marc McLaughlin recalled from the minors.
The move comes after Thursday’s 1-0 win over the Utah Hockey Club at TD Garden, which also featured a somewhat expanded role for the 24-year-old Merkulov.
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS – JANUARY 04: Georgii Merkulov #42 of the Boston Bruins takes a shot against the Pittsburgh Penguins during the first period at TD Garden on January 04, 2024 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
Now, the obvious question for the Bruins here is exactly where Merkulov goes from here.
This is now his third full season in the organization, and there’s an argument to be made that he was little left to prove in the AHL, with 56 goals and 131 points in 146 games in the AHL over the last three seasons.
At this point, it feels like Merkulov ceiling (at least with the Bruins organization) comes with him playing wing opposed to center, and being used in a mostly offensive-minded (perhaps even ‘sheltered’) role where he’s allowed to thrive in the offensive zone and with ample power-play minutes. The power-play minutes felt mostly solid here, too, despite the in-game demotion on Thursday night, as Merkulov had a clean zone-entry that helped create Charlie Coyle’s power-play goal in this past Monday’s blowout loss to the Blue Jackets.
It’s entirely possible that the Black and Gold officially look at Merkulov as a true tweener who can’t provide much to them at the NHL level, or that this is simply an opportunity to get a look at another player whose game is currently surging down on the farm for Ryan Mougenel’s squad.
Marc McLaughlin of the Bruins skates during a game against the Blues on April 12, 2022. (Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
McLaughlin, meanwhile, will return to the NHL in the midst of the hottest run of his pro career, with goals in five straight games for the P-Bruins dating back to Nov. 9.
Overall, the North Billerica, Mass. native has recorded five goals and 10 points in 15 games for Providence this season, putting him on pace for what would undeniably be the best pro season of his career, with a previous career-best of 30 points in 66 games for Providence in 2022-23.
What will be most interesting here is whether or not McLaughlin can regain some of the momentum he had under Bruce Cassidy (11 games in 2021-22) compared to Jim Montgomery. Limited to just three NHL games during Montomgery’s two-plus years behind the bench, McLaughlin actually scored a goal in his lone NHL appearance of the 2023-24 season, but was never heard from again after that game.
McLaughlin, who played his college hockey at Boston College, can play center and wing, and has recorded four goals and 21 hits in 14 NHL games over the last three seasons.
