Charlie McAvoy has become an elite NHL defenseman. After finishing fifth in the Norris Trophy voting last season, the former Boston University star continues to improve every year and is one of the top two-way defensemen in the sport. His absence this season, which should extend until late November or early December, will surely leave a void on the blue line of the Boston Bruins. While McAvoy is sidelined, the Bruins need other defensemen to pick up the slack. Brandon Carlo is the one right-shot blue-liner who needs to have a comeback season.
Carlo had a tough season at times in 2021-22, finishing a plus-2 and not bringing the physicality that the Bruins need from the 6-foot-6, 220-pound defenseman. The Colorado Springs, Colorado native has played six seasons in Boston but is still just 25 years old. Carlo is entering year two of a six-year deal that carries an annual cap hit of $4.1 million. That commitment from Boston showed that the organization views Carlo as a steady second-pair defenseman.
Recently, “steady” hasn’t been Carlo’s thing. The one glaring aspect of Carlo’s game that has eluded him is his physicality. With his size, the Bruins need the big defenseman to clear the front of the net and push his weight around. Last season, the former second-round pick in 2015 was not nearly physical enough and also lost some confidence playing with the puck. Carlo is a good skater for his size and is at his best when he can rush the puck and jump into the play offensively. But for much of last season, Carlo was not fluid with the puck and offered less and less on the offensive side despite tying a career-high with six goals.
A recent interview with The Athletic shed some light on what Carlo was going through last season in which he mentioned that he did not look forward to going to the rink and his confidence level had sunk drastically. Carlo drew the ire of former head coach Bruce Cassidy on several occasions to where the defenseman said that, at times, Cassidy would criticize the defenseman on the way to the bench. As more information come about, Carlo isn’t the only player to feel some relief from the departure of Cassidy.
Now with a new head coach Jim Montgomery and his softer demeanor, it is time for Brandon Carlo to get back to the player he was at the beginning of his career. The Bruins will need him to fill some of the void left from McAvoy’s absence on the right side. Boston has brought in veteran Anton Stralman and will look to sign him to help, but Carlo needs to show his value in killing penalties and shutting down opposing offenses. Hopefully, for Boston, Carlo needs a new voice on the bench to rejuvenate his career. There are five years left on Carlo’s contract, and the Bruins will need him to be a reliable defenseman who can give them the physicality identity they will need going forward. Now it is up to Brandon Carlo and nobody else.
