Coming off a historic regular season, followed by a crushing first-round playoff defeat to the Florida Panthers, it was hard to set expectations for how the 2023-2024 Boston Bruins would perform. GM Don Sweeney had gone “all in” last season trying to win the Stanley Cup with the additions of Dmitry Orlov, Garnet Hathaway, and Tyler Bertuzzi to a team en route to the highest point total in NHL history. Due to salary cap constraints, these three didn’t return, and the Bruins traded Taylor Hall and Nick Foligno to Chicago. That’s a lot of depth that Boston no longer had. Who would step up and contribute?
While it’s clear that this year’s team isn’t as good as last year’s, a few players have exceeded expectations. With the retirements of both Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci and the loss of Tomas Nosek to free agency, that’s seven starters, or more than half of their forwards, no longer on the team. Let’s start there. In no particular order, my first choice is James Van Riemsdyk. James, a former second-overall pick in 2007, came to Boston as an unrestricted free agent this past Summer. The UNH product has provided everything that was expected of him this season. He’s never been an overly physical player in terms of hitting, but he does use his size effectively to battle for and maintain puck possession, and he gives the Bruins a net-front presence they haven’t had for some time. The left shot left winger, expected to contribute to the power play, has done so. He’s nine points away from matching last year’s total; at one point, after a hot start to the season, he was on pace to provide a career year, and as of now, he is on pace to miss by only four points. He is fourth on the Bruins in scoring and provides a veteran presence at age thirty-four.
Matthew Poitras wasn’t expected to make the team coming out of training camp. The 19-year-old, having been drafted 54th overall in 2022, was projected to be sent back to his junior team, the Guelph Storm. However, he took advantage of an opportunity to play center. The Bruins have been weak in this position for years, exacerbated by the departure of long-time number one and two centers Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci. Poitras had a great training camp; he worked hard to improve and provided a spark to the offense with his high hockey IQ and passing ability. His game reminds me of former Bruins Craig Janney and Adam Oates, both shifty setup men. After scoring 95 points in 63 games in Guelph last year, could he provide similar results in Boston? The Bruins had nine regular season games at the start of the season to decide whether or not Poitras would spend the year in Boston or be sent back to Guelph of the OHL. After a hot start, there might have been a riot on Causeway Street if he hadn’t made the team. He’s remained in Boston, putting up five goals and seven assists for 12 points so far. Yes, his ice time has been reduced, he’s made some defensive mistakes, and he has been both a healthy scratch and benched, but no one expected anything from this player this season. I believe today’s announcement that he will join Team Canada for the World Junior Championships in Sweden is in his and the team’s best interest in the long run.
Danton Heinen was traded to the Anaheim Ducks for Nick Ritchie on February 24, 2020. Subsequently, he signed two one-year contracts with the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Penguins decided not to offer him a contract for 2023-24; surprisingly, no other NHL team signed him either. Having had a history in Boston and with head coach Jim Montgomery, for whom he played at Denver University, Danton came to Bruins training camp on a professional tryout agreement signed on September 5. It was not until the tail end of October before Heinen signed a league-minimum contract for this season as the Bruins maneuvered under the salary cap. It seems a majority of Bruins fans do not appreciate Heinen’s skills. He’s not overly physical, he’s not flashy, and he doesn’t have a scorer’s touch around the net. However, Danton is the hockey equivalent of a Swiss Army knife. He can play any forward position on lines one through four. He does all the little things necessary to win hockey games right; he provides solid defense battles for the puck and is skilled at deflections in front of the opposing net. Heinen is seventh on the team in points per game and tied for fifth in plus/minus. Going from a PTO to being a pivotal contributor to the team is undoubtedly overachievement from my viewpoint.
A former Boston University defenseman, Kevin Shattenkirk, is the last of the four players I chose to include. Going into the offseason, it was clear that Connor Clifton was not the answer as a third-pairing right defenseman and needed to be replaced. I understood then that the Bruins were looking for someone to pair and balance with Derek Forbort; Shattenkirk’s career has been based on his offensive skills. One does not play for thirteen seasons in the NHL as a defenseman without playing acceptable defense, however, unless your name is Erik Karlsson. I have been pleasantly surprised with Shattenkirk’s defensive work, having watched him play since being a freshman at BU. He’s made his share of mistakes, including pinching when he shouldn’t. Still, Shattenkirk has stepped up and contributed with Hampus Lindholm struggling to make an offensive impact, several injuries, and lost man games for Charlie McAvoy and Matt Grzelcyk. As he approaches his thirty-fifth birthday and a schedule that has sometimes had three games in four nights, it’s no surprise that Shattenkirk has been a healthy scratch. I am surprised coach Montgomery has not played him more often, considering the readily apparent drop-off in skill between Shattenkirk and his replacement, Ian Mitchell.
While it’s clear that this year’s Boston Bruins are not as good as last year’s, they have received contributions above and beyond expectations from several players. Bruins fans are in for more “nail-biters” this season, as the solid defense and goaltending can only get them so far. James Van Riemsdyk, Matthew Poitras, Danton Heinen, and Kevin Shattenkirk are four players helping compensate for all the talent lost due to salary cap issues and retirement.
