Poke the Bear by CLNS Media Sports Network - Dailymotion

CLNS Media Sports Network

Boston.com's Bruins reporter Conor Ryan offers up weekly thoughts, opinions and analysis on all things surrounding the Black and Gold in “Poke The Bear” — a new podcast centered on the Original Six club. Each week, Conor and a number of guests offer in-depth breakdowns on the latest news surrounding the B’s — and having plenty of fun along the way. So sit back, grab a libation (or Dunks, no one’s judging here) and let’s talk some hockey.

Transcript

00:00 [MUSIC]

00:07 And welcome into Poke the Bear,

00:08 Episode 156, presented by FanDuel.

00:12 My name is Connor Ryan and I am writing solo today.

00:16 I just got back from a extended trip out west to Arizona,

00:21 Utah, New Mexico.

00:24 So I got in super late last night,

00:27 got back from that extended trek, and as a result, I am writing solo today.

00:34 Evan has the day off, I'm not having him record at the crack of dawn or

00:38 anything like that.

00:39 So I am trudging through this show solo today,

00:45 fighting through a few sunburns, a few things like that.

00:48 Just to talk a little bit of brew and talk with all of you guys.

00:51 So as we usually do when it's these solo shows,

00:55 we're gonna keep it to a mailbag format.

00:57 So I reached out on Twitter to see if anyone had any brewing related questions

01:04 regarding the team as we're kind of going through this latest stretch of

01:07 kind of the second Bryce spell I guess of the off season, right?

01:12 You have really not a lot to report on from May through early June.

01:18 Then you have the draft and free agency and

01:22 dev camp and all those things all kind of compressed over a two week window.

01:25 Now we're in that kind of same stretch where we're kind of just waiting for

01:28 the other two to drop, right?

01:29 Like most of free agency is done.

01:31 At this point, the Bruins are pretty much just waiting on the decisions of

01:36 Chris Bergeron and David Krejci.

01:37 And until you find out what's kind of the next step for those guys,

01:41 you're kind of in this holding pattern, right?

01:42 Those are the two guys that normally going to determine how exactly or

01:48 what exactly the ceiling for this team is going to be.

01:51 But it also if you find out when Bergeron and Krejci come back or

01:56 if they come back, it lets the rest of your lineup fall into place.

02:00 You know where exactly a guy like Morgan Geeky is starting to line up.

02:03 Is Pavlo Zaka going to be your 2C?

02:06 Is a guy like Coyle going to be bumped into top six minutes?

02:09 Like so many other things hinge on that.

02:10 And till we get that answer, we really don't know.

02:14 So until then, we're going to field a few questions.

02:17 Again, reach out on Twitter to our loyal subscribers and readers over there.

02:24 So let's just dive into it.

02:25 So first question we have is from Chad McVean at Veener85,

02:31 who says, with roughly 5 million in cap space, how much is left for

02:36 Jeremy Swinman and Trenton Frederick while leaving 1 million for the captain?

02:40 Could one year deal for both and a handshake deal for

02:42 more next season when the cap jumps up?

02:45 Or if not, who gets moved out?

02:47 >> Yeah, I mean, it's definitely Chad, first of all, thanks for the question.

02:50 But it's tough in terms of framing out those handshake,

02:56 wink, wink, nod, nod kind of deals like that.

02:59 Just because, again, unless you're a guy like I think it was what Kevin LeBanc,

03:05 who signed that one year deal way below his market value and

03:08 really didn't pan out for him in the long term.

03:10 For as much as I think people project that there are these things where teams

03:14 are gonna do right by players, I think players and especially their agents,

03:18 probably the NHLPA, wanted to be more on the side of getting paid what you're due,

03:24 what you did this past season.

03:26 And again, that can sometimes get into a muddled area when you look at maybe a guy

03:30 like Frederick in terms of he had a breakout year to the Brunson that's

03:35 sustainable and he's due the certain amount of money that he thinks he's due.

03:39 Those are things that you sort out, but I can't see a situation where

03:45 for as much as I'm sure from team perspective, it's like, all right,

03:48 listen, bear with us.

03:50 One year deal, really cheap, below probably what your market rate is going to be for

03:55 this season, and then we'll do right by you next year.

03:57 In principle, it sounds great.

03:59 The Bruins would love to have that happen.

04:01 I'm sure fans would love to have one less cap related headache that's

04:07 already been kind of the main theme of this offseason so

04:09 far by having those guys signed one year deals at what, 1 million,

04:14 one and a half, something like that.

04:16 I just don't see that being the case.

04:18 So it is going to be really tough to see what exactly the course is going to be.

04:23 Because again, even if you look at just what the natural projections from a guy

04:27 like Swainman and Frederick are, are you looking at two and

04:31 a half million for a guy like Frederick?

04:33 More, right?

04:33 Are you looking at Swainman, is he going to get a similar deal to what a guy like

04:39 Spencer Knight got a few years ago?

04:41 So those are going to be the things that are going to determine just how much

04:44 caps we see have left.

04:45 And at that point, it's all right, if you do know that Preece Bergeron's coming back,

04:50 is it, are you moving another contract?

04:53 Are you trying to, another buyout window comes up and you're able to move on from

04:57 a guy like, I don't know, like is a guy like Derek Forward going to be a casualty

05:02 of that if you sign both Frederick and Swainman to market level deals, but

05:06 Preece Bergeron is coming back?

05:08 Like it's so tough to kind of map out what exactly the next step is, but, and

05:14 you won't really know until you find out if Bergeron's back.

05:16 Now, it remains to be seen if the Bruins already know that and

05:19 they're bracing for that or what the next move's going to be.

05:21 But it is a task easier said than done when you look at how they can kind of

05:26 balance out what's left of this remaining cap space they have and

05:30 what the next course is going to be.

05:32 Because even if these guys get paid,

05:36 what you'd expect Frederick and Swainman don't have a whole lot of money left

05:40 over after that.

05:41 And again, I think if Bergeron comes back, you're expecting a very similar type of

05:45 contract to last year, right?

05:47 Where he's going to pretty much bail this team out in terms of what his annual

05:51 payout's going to be.

05:52 But still, you need to have at least a million left over, right?

05:56 You can't have it be 400,000 or something like that.

06:01 You need to pay this guy at the very least a minimum of what he's already

06:05 going to be underpaid for this upcoming season.

06:08 So it is a tough thing to weigh, but I don't see a situation where both Swainman

06:14 and Frederick are signing for one year, 1 million, 1.5,

06:19 just to make the money work this year.

06:20 I just don't see that being feasible from the player's side,

06:23 especially their representatives.

06:24 All right, next one is from Alex @randomtask68, says,

06:30 which young players prospects are going to make it or break it 2023, 24 season?

06:36 Yeah, I mean, there's a lot of guys, Alex, first of all, thanks for the question.

06:39 But a lot of guys that stand out in that regard in terms of are going to be

06:44 in situations where they can really try to make a sustained push.

06:47 In terms of make it or break it, I can look at guys like Lauco or

06:54 maybe a guy like Lysel or Laurie.

06:56 But even Lysel or Laurie, I wouldn't say it's make it or break it,

06:59 because if those guys need more time down in Providence,

07:02 I think the Bruins are going to chart that course for them.

07:05 Again, even though there are more vacancies, at least on paper,

07:09 going into the season, I don't think they're going to rush a guy like Lysel or

07:12 Laurie just because they're the flashiest prospects or

07:16 they maybe have the higher ceiling amongst this crop of young talent the Bruins have.

07:21 I would say some guys though, it's those guys who I think have been in the system

07:24 for a little while that this is gonna be kind of more or less their last chance.

07:28 I kind of look at how a guy like Yaka Blauco was where last training camp,

07:32 seemed like he was gonna be outside looking in at regular minutes.

07:37 Had been in the system for a good while at that point.

07:40 If he didn't pop in training camp,

07:41 you kind of view that as being his kind of last run with this team.

07:44 So I look at guys like Osterstein, who could be in the mix for

07:50 a fourth line role, even though again, there's so many guys in that spot now.

07:53 You know, saying the guy like Boquist further kind of complicates that in terms

07:58 of getting those minutes, but he's a guy that has shown some potential when he's

08:01 been called up, just hasn't consistently been able to earn those minutes.

08:05 So he's a guy, Mark McGlaughlin, who again, I think is still waivers,

08:09 is exempt from waivers to be sent down.

08:11 But still, that's a guy that I think you look at him in his game,

08:16 kind of fits the profile of a fourth line guy up at the NHL level.

08:21 Really solid two way play, really underrated shot,

08:24 was known as a key piece on a couple of BC teams during his collegiate career.

08:30 Certainly helps that he's a mass native, again, right?

08:33 If you're looking for a guy who kind of fit the bill as future Bruins, but

08:37 he's a guy that I think when Lauco made the team last year,

08:42 people were kind of confused by it in terms of just how good Mark McGlaughlin was

08:46 during training camp.

08:47 He was arguably their most consistent, impactful forward throughout

08:50 that preseason slate, get sent down to Providence.

08:54 So hopefully he's able to kind of build off of his last season in Providence and

08:58 make a push there, because he's a guy that again, if you're looking at internal

09:03 candidates who can fill in roles, a guy like McGlaughlin makes plenty of sense.

09:08 And I think one guy in terms of just where his development is and

09:11 where he could project to the next level, I'll probably throw Johnny Beecher in that

09:15 mix, again, he's a guy that first run talent, hasn't,

09:18 offensively hasn't put it all together down in Providence.

09:22 But he's a guy that you look at just where he kind of fits and

09:27 what his role could be on the scene as a fourth line senator.

09:31 He's someone who you look at that skill set where he's got great speed,

09:36 big body, can play physical.

09:38 People can be upset if a fourth line staller,

09:43 that's not exactly what you want out of a guy that's a first round pick.

09:45 But if he can be your Sean Corral and play a similar role like that for

09:50 the next four or five years, there's value in that.

09:53 You just need to find out if he has what it takes to make that jump up to the NHL

09:57 level.

09:57 So whether that's making a really good impression during training camp,

10:02 if he does get sent down to Providence again this upcoming season,

10:06 does he build off of it?

10:07 Is he a guy that becomes more of a consistent offensive generator down in

10:11 Providence for the first few months and then he gets called up again later on this

10:15 year?

10:15 I think those things you have to weigh with a guy like Beecher, who again,

10:18 has the potential for what his role could be in the NHL, just needs to put it all

10:21 together.

10:22 So I think that's a guy that really sticks out to me.

10:24 It's a guy that could be in a bit of a make it or break it year.

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11:29 [MUSIC]

11:34 >> This next question is from @pocketchimpy, who says,

11:39 if we had to have one, who do we keep, Frederick or Swayman?

11:43 First of all, thanks for the question @pocketchimpy.

11:46 I think there it's gotta be Swayman in terms of, again,

11:49 you can maybe view his role as being a bit redundant with the Gali goal mark still

11:54 in place, but I still think if you look at this team and what in this,

11:58 if you wanna call it a bridge year, what their keys to success are going to be.

12:02 It's gonna be goaltending, and it's gonna be defense.

12:05 And they're not gonna have nearly as much offensive firepower,

12:07 not nearly as much depth.

12:09 But if you're able to have a situation where you have that tandem of Swayman,

12:14 O'Mark, and Nett, I think that can go a long way towards getting you in a position

12:19 where you can continue to grind out wins, remain in the playoff picture.

12:24 And having a guy like Swayman in place who was really, really good last year and

12:29 stands to be even better moving forward,

12:31 where considering where he is in his development, his age,

12:34 I think that's a guy you really covet.

12:36 And it's hard to say that Frederick's the guy that if the arbitration goes awry,

12:40 the Bruins are just gonna be like, all right, peace.

12:42 Like, Frederick, I think we've mentioned this on multiple podcasts before,

12:46 talking with Evan.

12:47 He's such a fascinating player to project, and

12:51 that we don't really know what exactly he is, right?

12:53 Is he this 17, 20 goal guy that showed flashes that last year,

12:59 who has added value off of his physicality,

13:02 his way to impact the game in that regard?

13:05 Like, even if he may not be as dynamic of a player,

13:08 you'll get whatever line he was on last year, he helped out whoever he was on,

13:12 just doing kind of the little things.

13:14 So is he more of that player or

13:16 see a player that was on a bit of a shooting heater last year?

13:19 He's more of a 10, 12 goal, kind of fringe, third line, fourth line guy.

13:24 We don't really know what exactly his spot's going to be.

13:27 That remains to be seen.

13:28 So, let's not say the Bruins are gonna give up entirely on him or

13:31 anything like that.

13:31 They still wanna sign him.

13:34 But if you had to pick just one,

13:35 I think if you're the Bruins, you're going to Swain in that regard.

13:37 So, thank you for the question, @pocketchimpie.

13:39 This next one is Frederick for MVP, you probably disagree with my last comment.

13:46 And Frederick for MVP says, or asks, who is more likely to break out next year,

13:51 Lysel or Merkulov?

13:52 If you ask me, I'm probably going to lean more on Merkulov in terms of,

13:56 I think his just overall game is probably more developed at this point.

14:01 I think Lysel, listen, you can see the talent is evident.

14:03 The skating, the offensive capabilities.

14:07 If he's able to put kind of his second half dip last season in the rear view

14:13 mirror, come into this camp healthy, motivated, committed, and makes a push.

14:18 I wouldn't put it past him making a pretty good case for

14:22 opening the year on what have you, third line, top six.

14:26 Is this gonna be a situation where he's kind of the Andrew Bjork or

14:31 Jake Dabrowski a few years ago, where he has a really good preseason.

14:35 Earns a top six spot out of the gate and kind of rolls with it.

14:38 Like he has the potential to do that, puts it all together.

14:40 But I think if you're the Bruins, you don't want to rush a guy like that,

14:43 who really did kind of hit a wall last year.

14:46 He still has a bit to work on with his conditioning or

14:52 his physicality or fighting through things, defense, getting a little bit of work.

14:56 So I think you just look at what Merkulov did last year.

15:00 And again, he's still a guy that has to work on his overall game.

15:03 Again, no one's perfect at that stage of their development.

15:05 But whether it's his defensive play or feeling on his frame as well.

15:11 But Markov, and you look at his skill set and how impressive he was in

15:15 the offensive part of his game down in the NHL ranks last year.

15:19 He's a guy that is really interesting to see where exactly he fits on this team.

15:24 Playmaking is there, good shot, good one timer.

15:27 And again, if you're the Bruins and you're looking for this state of this roster

15:32 where you don't have nearly as much scoring depth.

15:35 If a guy like Merkulov can make a good impression out of camp and

15:38 all of a sudden he's a guy that you can trust in a middle six roll out of the game

15:42 as a rookie and you're gonna ease him along.

15:45 And as the year goes on, he becomes an impact player for you.

15:48 That's the best case scenario for the Bruins, right?

15:51 If you look at this Bruins team, right, they're trying to stay competitive this

15:54 year, of course, with defense and goaltending.

15:56 But if they can do that, remain in the playoff picture, set themselves up for

16:00 a really hefty spending spree next year when the cap jumps up and

16:05 they have a lot of money coming off the books.

16:07 And also get some clarity with some younger guys,

16:09 whether it's someone like a Merkulov or Beecher or Lauko or someone like that.

16:15 If you can get out of this upcoming season while also having one or

16:19 two younger guys who have fought and carved out sustained roles for themselves.

16:23 Pretty good season for the Bruins and

16:24 I'm not sure just how daunting this offseason was.

16:28 So I do think they're going to see how a guy like Lysel Merkulov could do.

16:33 If they're gonna get I'm sure plenty of reps this preseason, but again,

16:36 it falls on the player themselves to make that push during this preseason slate.

16:41 But if you ask me, I probably put Merkulov a little bit higher in terms of maybe

16:44 just how NHL ready he is.

16:47 Talking ceiling, I probably lean more Lysel, but

16:49 I think he has a little bit more ways to go.

16:53 >> This is a nice question.

16:54 This is from loyal listener, Ty Anderson, @_tyanderson,

16:59 who asks, why do you, a native of Orlando,

17:03 Florida, pick your Boston accent for TikTok?

17:07 >> No comment, Ty.

17:10 >> No comment.

17:13 Moving right along, we got one from Robbie Fineman @thefinestman,

17:18 who asks, what makes sense for JD, Jake DeBrusque?

17:22 Trade well his value, is that a high, or

17:23 hope to negotiate an extension at season's end?

17:25 Great question, Robbie, and it's gonna be a really fascinating kind of

17:31 situation to see how the Bruins tackle this.

17:33 Because I think ideally, you look at Jake DeBrusque and what he brings.

17:38 And for his talent, for where he's been in the lineup,

17:43 you look at the last couple years ever since he got slotted to the top six.

17:46 He's been pretty much a dirty goal guy, he stays healthy.

17:49 If he didn't break his leg with a Hornet Classic last year,

17:50 you're looking at a guy who scored 35 goals, right?

17:55 And for what his value is, and as a guy who has been kind of homegrown to

18:00 the Bruins system, I think ideally you wanna keep him.

18:02 It just depends on what exactly that money's going to be, right?

18:06 That's gonna be the biggest hurdle, right?

18:08 Because I don't think, as much as he was rumored as a potential trade chip this

18:14 offseason, you look at what his cap hit is, plus the expected production you're

18:19 gonna get out of him, even if Bridge Run's not there,

18:21 wherever you put DeBrusque in the top six, he's gonna do some damage this year.

18:25 He's gonna give you at least, I think, 25 goals, if not more,

18:28 if he stays healthy.

18:30 So if you're the Bruins and you're trying to remain competitive and

18:34 try to keep some more of that scoring capabilities there,

18:38 I don't think you're moving on from a guy like DeBrusque,

18:39 especially at that price range.

18:41 But by that same token,

18:43 you have to figure out what are you gonna do with this upcoming offseason?

18:46 Because let's say DeBrusque is a 30 goal scorer.

18:49 He's doing a pretty nice raise, right?

18:51 Do you wanna be the team that gives him six years at six and a half,

18:57 seven million, right?

18:58 If anything, DeBrusque is probably due for an even heftier pay raise,

19:02 because a lot of these players hitting for

19:04 agency this upcoming summer are gonna benefit from the cap jumping up.

19:07 And again, the Bruins are in a good spot where they are going to have a whole bunch

19:12 of cap space available this upcoming summer.

19:15 But are you gonna divert a pretty hefty piece of that to re-signing a guy like

19:21 DeBrusque or would you rather use that for other players like Elias Lindholm or

19:26 Noah Hannafin or what have you?

19:28 Like maybe the Bruins have the ability to spend inside two or three of those guys.

19:33 But it is something that if you're gonna have all this money available when you're

19:38 Don Sweeney, you wanna spend it wisely, right?

19:40 Because you already have a pretty solid foundation in place.

19:43 But the last thing you wanna do is kind of stunt this next kind of contention

19:47 window or this next generation of talent you have there with a few Albatross

19:52 contracts or deals that aren't gonna age very well.

19:55 That's not to say that DeBrusque won't age well, but

19:57 they have to make that determination of whether or

20:00 not he's a guy that's gonna be worth six year deal at seven, seven and a half

20:03 million, cuz that is gonna be really interesting to see how it works out.

20:08 I still think the Bruins are inclined to keep him, but

20:10 it's something definitely worth monitoring.

20:11 And this one is actually kind of going off that.

20:15 This is Thornsfan19, he says,

20:18 any chance they play DeBrusque at left wing opposite Pasta?

20:21 That is actually gonna be a really interesting case this year, Thornsfan,

20:26 because again, he's been really good on his weak side at right wing

20:32 the last couple of years, put on with a line with Marchion and Bergeron.

20:36 Great to be seen and Bergeron's gonna be back.

20:38 So again, he's one of the many other guys who you kind of weigh those options as to

20:42 what this line is gonna look like when you don't have or

20:46 do have a guy like Chris Bergeron in that lineup.

20:49 But it is a fascinating case in terms of, let's say,

20:51 a younger player like a Lysel does pop during the preseason.

20:58 You do have the luxury then of slotting DeBrusque back to his natural spot at

21:02 left wing and slotting him next to guy like Pavel Zaka and David Pasternak.

21:07 And again, you look at just the offense capabilities that line,

21:13 there's a lot to like about, right?

21:14 I think DeBrusque is still a guy you can pencil in for 20, 25 goals.

21:18 But putting him with guy like David Pasternak and Pavel Zaka,

21:20 who I think really made impressive strides last year.

21:23 What's to say that he can't continue to put those numbers in that similar role?

21:28 If that opens up a spot on the top line for a guy like Lysel or

21:33 could a guy like a Morgan Geeky make a sustained push and

21:37 fight for a role in the top six or what have you?

21:40 I think you look at just where the Bruins have prioritized this season in terms of

21:45 how they're gonna handle their fuller core.

21:47 They all relies on flexibility, right?

21:49 And having the ability to switch guys out, kind of tinkier to line up around kind of

21:53 the guys you know where they're gonna fall into the lineup.

21:55 But whether it's guys like Geeky, whether it's you look at this really

22:00 crowded fourth line grouping where you've got the opportunity for

22:03 younger guys like a Bischer or a Lauko or McLaughlin to fight for minutes.

22:08 But if they don't pan out, they're not at that stage of their development yet.

22:11 You have plenty of guys like Boquist or Patrick Brown or

22:15 what have you that can step into those roles, Milan Lucic obviously.

22:19 I think for the Bruins, it's just they have a lot of guys in place already

22:23 that remains to be seen how it's all gonna sort out.

22:25 But very least giving themselves options and having the brush and

22:29 having that ability to swat him back over to left wing.

22:32 I think fits in line with what the Bruins are thinking there where

22:36 you can help drive play in the top six on the right side.

22:40 But if he needs to go back to his natural spot because the guy pushes and

22:43 we have a room there on the right side, to rest and move back to left wing.

22:47 And I think we'll be pretty happy if he's playing regular minutes with guys like

22:51 David Pashunak and Pavel Zakha.

22:53 So that's definitely something to keep tabs on as well.

22:56 So I think those are all the questions we have for today.

22:59 We're gonna wrap this up now.

23:01 But again, we'll be back to our regular programming next week, Evan and I.

23:06 So expect more Bruins beat and poke the bears.

23:09 We kind of continue to navigate through these kind of slower stretches of

23:13 the Bruins offseason.

23:14 Again, we'll see what happens when Fischberger and

23:16 David Creechie do make their decisions.

23:18 Cuz then it will ramp up again quite a bit.

23:20 But until then, thank you guys for listening to episode 156 of Poke the Bear.

23:25 I'm Conor Ryan.

23:26 Thank you guys for listening.

23:27 [MUSIC]

23:37 (upbeat music)

23:40 (upbeat music)

Bruins Mailbag: The Future of Jake DeBrusk and More | Poke the Bear

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