With their 5-2 win over the Boston Bruins putting them atop the NHL standings with a 12-1-2 record, there are still going to be some tough decisions facing the Bruins in the near future.
In the immediate future, as they maneuver through LTIR and juggle the cap, you can expect Oskar Steen, and Ian Mitchell to be sent to Providence to get to the minimum 20-man roster and save valuable cap space. Who knows? Maybe by the time you’re reading this they may have already done so.
Since Steen (October 8), and Mitchell (October 26) have already cleared waivers this season, they fall under a special category that makes them waiver exempt. Since they’ve already cleared, they can spend 30 days cumulative or play in 10 games and not require waivers. Patrick Brown, who cleared on October 9 has spent 30 days on the roster and therefore requires waivers again.
That’s fine. Paper transactions to wiggle around the cap. But the tough decisions loom with Milan Lucic, Matt Grzelcyk and Morgan Geekie inching closer to return.
Lucic was placed on LTIR on October 27 and is eligible to come off LTIR Monday. But Coach Jim Montgomery said he’s a week off of that. Geekie was placed on injured reserve on November 9 and is eligible to come off tomorrow but is expected back next week. Grzelcyk was placed on LTIR on November 1 and is eligible to return Saturday November 25.
No matter which way you slice it, the Bruins can only keep a 22-man roster when healthy to remain cap compliant. That means three players being sent to Providence when Lucic, Grzelcyk and Geekie return.
And that brings me back to Steen. He hasn’t done anything to suggest he doesn’t belong on this roster full time at this point. Further complicating the decision with Steen is that unless he plays in 46 more games this season, he will become a Group 6 unrestricted free agent and he might decide he has a better chance in another organization. If he does get those 46 games in, he remains a restricted free agent with arbitration rights.
While Matthew Poitras does not require waivers, he is not eligible for the AHL. And he’s not going anywhere. It seems inevitable that Brown will be one of the odd men out and I don’t know anyone that has an issue with that. If Steen isn’t one of the other two – and like I said, he doesn’t deserve to be – who are?
The most glaring decision comes when Grzelcyk is cleared. Mitchell has been serviceable as the seventh defenceman. Nothing spectacular, just going about doing his job quietly. Which brings us to Mason Lohrei. While he’s had a few shaky moments, you can see his confidence growing with each passing period of hockey. Lohrei needs to be playing, either in Boston or Providence to continue to develop. He doesn’t require waivers but he also shouldn’t be the 7th defenceman in Boston.
I don’t have the answer but I’m sure many of you do. However, the Bruins are BIG on depth and who they have to put on waivers will play a big role in their decision making. Someone is going to suggest trading Derek Forbort. Again, depth is BIG on this management team. Find me a trade partner. Who is going to PK on the left side after Hampus Lindholm?
I’m sure once the decision is made, there will be some upset fans. I might even be one of them. But I can tell you there are plenty of NHL teams that wish they had the same problem as Boston.
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Dom - Hockey 