Joe Haggerty, Jimmy Murphy and Mark Divver discuss the trade rumors involving Linus Ullmark and whether he might end up with the Ottawa Senators over the next few weeks.
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00:00Welcome to the Pucks with Hags podcast powered by PrizePix, the exclusive daily fantasy partner
00:10of the CLNS Media Network.
00:12This is the 101st episode of the Pucks with Hags podcast.
00:16I'm your host, Joe Hagerty.
00:17You can find my work at joehagerty.substack.com.
00:21Subscribe for a premium membership, get all of my NHL and Bruins writing sent straight
00:24directly to your inbox.
00:25I also file columns three times a week for the Boston Sports Journal, so go to bostonsportsjournal.com
00:31and check out all of that stuff, all the Bruins writing I do over there.
00:34With me today, I have the New England Hockey Journal's Mark Diver and an old, old friend
00:39making his Pucks with Hags, this version of the Pucks with Hags podcast debut, Jimmy Murphy.
00:45James, tell everybody where they can find your work, my friend.
00:48Yeah, so no longer with Boston Hockey now, but you can still find me on the iTest podcast
00:52on the CIC Media Network with Pierre Maguire.
00:55And then I'm also just joined Substack myself, Joe.
00:58So you can go to Murphy's Hockey Law on Substack and find me there as well for the time being.
01:03Some stuff in the works, and when it arises, I will let everyone know.
01:07That's awesome.
01:08All right, well, welcome to the Pucks with Hags podcast, Murph.
01:10We're glad to have you.
01:12All right, let's get into it.
01:14Just thoughts, Mark, let's start with you.
01:17Just from where we are in the Stanley Cup final, Florida looked, Florida looked exhausted.
01:24Florida looked tired.
01:25Florida looked like they were kind of mailing in that game six a little bit.
01:27I don't know if they were saving it all up for game seven, if they just didn't have anything
01:31in the tank or if they're just like on the really wrong side of the momentum right now.
01:36But they didn't feel to me like they brought much to the table in that game six in Edmonton.
01:41And now we go to a game seven in Florida, which I still think Florida is going to win
01:45in game seven.
01:46I know it's not trending that way right now, but I think that's what's going to happen.
01:50Just your thoughts on where we are in the Stanley Cup final.
01:53Well, going from a 3-0 series to now a 3-3 series, you know, it's the last three games
02:02have been tremendous.
02:03I mean, if you're a hockey fan, it's been great to watch.
02:08I thought game five was awesome.
02:09That was one of the most hockey games I've seen in a long time.
02:13Absolutely.
02:14Absolutely.
02:15But I don't know.
02:16Yeah, Florida could surprise some people and win the next game, but how do you reel it
02:25back in?
02:26I don't know.
02:27We'll see.
02:28We'll see how good of a coach Paul Maurice is over the next couple of days.
02:35Just the momentum, it's all going in Edmonton's favor.
02:42And you know, Bob Rovsky doesn't look like the same guy he was certainly against the
02:47Bruins or early in this series.
02:51So you know, somebody said the plane ride today is like the worst plane ride in hockey
03:00history for the Panthers, and I have to agree with that.
03:05So I mean, I don't know how they find their way out of this.
03:09I really don't.
03:11No, I mean, it's trending right now and the momentum is all going towards Edmonton just
03:16pulling it out in game seven and, you know, Conor McDavid probably pulling out some kind
03:20of like, you know, MVP superstar performance, something that he where he's going to rise
03:26to the occasion and meet the moment and make sure the Oilers win.
03:29Like you could see that definitely happening.
03:32But I also think when you watch enough hockey playoffs and you watch enough of the Stanley
03:37Cup playoffs, especially when teams are coming back from 3-0 and the amount of energy that
03:44they have to expend to get back from 3-0 to tie the series, especially at the end of a
03:50long two months where they've been, you know, play in the playoff gauntlet for a long time.
03:56Sometimes we see those teams push to a game seven, but then they've got absolutely nothing
04:01in the tank when game seven starts and it's just clear that they're just out of gas.
04:06And, you know, I feel like we could see that in game seven where Edmonton has pushed all
04:11the way that they have and maybe they're, you know, the tank's going to be on E when
04:15they get to game seven, especially, but it's weird and counterintuitive to say that because
04:21it really looked like Florida's tank was on E in game six.
04:25But I feel like we might see that.
04:27I still think Florida is the better team.
04:29Obviously, they did not play well in game six.
04:32I expect to see the best that they have to offer in game seven.
04:37And I just, I've seen them play too well over the last few post-seasons to think they're
04:41not going to bring their best in game seven.
04:44But to your point, like it feels like it's Edmonton series to lose right now.
04:49Murph, your thoughts on the Stanley Cup final?
04:52Well, I think, you know, it's been, it's been a lot of irony in the last few games as Edmonton's
04:57come back.
04:58And as one thing I've been looking at is just the tide has turned in face-offs.
05:02Not just the Oilers in the first three games of this series, but all teams they played
05:06in the playoffs.
05:07We saw how dominant they were against the Bruins in that six-team series.
05:11So that's something I noticed that Edmonton's now taking that, that's gone in Edmonton's
05:14favor.
05:15And then the other thing too, guys, I think, you know, Paul Coffey, Mark Stewart, running
05:21the defense there, Mark Stewart, specifically the penalty kill, which who would have thought
05:25that would become the Oilers bread and butter in this playoff?
05:27I think it's, that's really ironic.
05:30But I think Paul Coffey deserves a lot of credit for figuring out how to get them and
05:35be making those first outlet passes and breaking through that neutral zone coverage that Florida
05:40has been so dominant with.
05:42And then I got to give a lot of credit to Stewart Skinner, guys.
05:44I mean, you look back at each of these wins in this series with his team facing elimination.
05:49Now you always say, what do you need when you're in an elimination game?
05:52You know, you could go home if you lose.
05:54You need some big saves early on, right?
05:56From your goalie to get your team into it, to know that you're behind them.
06:00They can depend on you and he's given them that and they fed off it.
06:03So I know he's not the most glamorous goalie.
06:06He's not, he's not in Bobrovsky's category.
06:07I get it.
06:08But I think he deserves a lot of credit for helping them get back into the series.
06:12Yeah.
06:13And to your point, that stretch pass has really neutralized the Florida four check and they've
06:19been able to just throw home run passes that like in the last few games, it's turned into
06:24the Panthers giving up tons of odd man rushes, tons of great chances.
06:27And you know, part of that is just the, the, the, the strategy of the stretch pass.
06:32And part of that is because Edmonton has so many players forwards that can make you pay
06:37when they're on the receiving end of the stretch pass and can finish off those plays.
06:41They're a dangerous team that can, you know, make that strategy hurt the other team and
06:46make the Panthers pay when they're overaggressive.
06:48So it's been really interesting to watch all of that.
06:53At this point, is it almost a fait accompli that win or lose in game seven Murph that
07:00Conor McDavid wins the con Smythe?
07:03I think you have to give it to him and let's see what he does in game seven.
07:05Another thing I should note too, guys, I think that we have to look at last night and a great
07:09job by Knoblauch to do this is it went on and maybe he realized, I would say pretty
07:14much after that Florida, that Barkoff goal was called back on the offsides challenge,
07:18which I know you probably want to get into in a bit, but they limited the time for, you
07:23know, McDavid and Drysdale.
07:25He was able to reel them in a bit and I mean, McDavid only had 1858.
07:29Now he didn't register a shot or a point, but he's going to be well rested for game
07:33seven as is Drysdale who, you know, didn't have his usual workload as well.
07:37So yeah, I think McDavid comes out, he has a hell of a game and I think win or lose,
07:41he's going to get the con Smythe.
07:42Yeah.
07:43And honestly, like I took the position before game six that the Oilers were only going to
07:48win Stanley cup final games as long as McDavid was going nuts and having superstar performances.
07:54And that didn't happen in game six.
07:56Uh, you know, Adam Henrik and other guys stepped up and, and, and filled in and, and showed
08:02that, you know, it's a team effort and, and that they do have other players that can step
08:06up in the moment and help them.
08:09Um, Mark, what do you sort of on that train of thought that McDavid is, is going to win
08:15the con Smythe here, no matter what happens, just based on his, in his whole body work
08:19in the playoffs and the way he's, he in, in a lot of ways was instrumental in this turnaround
08:23for Edmonton, obviously with a couple of like all time performances to get wins for the
08:27Oilers.
08:28Yeah, I would agree with McDavid, uh, with the caveat that if, uh, Bob Rofsky makes,
08:36I don't know, 45, 50 saves on Monday night, you know, maybe, maybe that changes the, uh,
08:43the vote.
08:44But, uh, yeah, I'd go with McDavid for sure.
08:46He just been an, you know, a performance befitting, uh, you know, the, the superstar that he is.
08:52Are we predicting a 45 save shutout performance for Bob Rofsky, Mark, is that what we're doing
08:57right now?
08:58No, I don't make predictions, Joe, you know, we're in the analysis business.
09:05We have all the answers after the fact, not after the fact, absolutely.
09:10Uh, I mean, Murph, we could get into the, the, uh, the Barkov goal getting overturned,
09:16the offsides review, like if you guys want to talk about it or not, I'd go for it.
09:22But like, I just look, it needs to be changed bottom line, but we are where we are.
09:27We can't do anything about it now.
09:28Right.
09:29Like, I guess it was the right call, like by a millimeter and or a millisecond.
09:32But like, I hate that, like something that close gets overturned, especially in a moment
09:37like that in a game like that, it really changes the whole game.
09:41When it's going to be a two to one game, Barkov scores, like Florida kind of steals back the
09:46momentum a little bit.
09:47Who knows where it would have gone after that, but for, for that to happen on that play where
09:53it's just like barely offside, if at all, that, that, I don't know, I just, I would
09:58rather see less review rather than more review.
10:01I agree.
10:03I mean, I'm sure Mark does as well.
10:04I just think it is where it is.
10:05And I think it's something you need to reevaluate going forward.
10:08I don't know how much change we're going to see between now and next season because I've
10:12seen some insiders tweet that there's not much of an appetite from GMs right now, which
10:16I find crazy, but for things to change, but we'll see.
10:20We'll see.
10:21Well, like once you open the door to technology, it's tough to close it because I'm technically
10:26they do get the calls right, depending on how, you know, the interpretation of the video
10:30or the rules or whatever, but like, you know, most of the time it's the right call, Mark.
10:35And it's hard to argue with that, even if it slows the game up, takes some of the human
10:40error that's always been a part of the game out of it with the referees, especially in
10:44a bang bang play like that.
10:46Like there are just times I wish we could go back to where the way it was before the
10:50reviews started.
10:51Yeah.
10:52I hate it.
10:53I hate it.
10:55You know, we all watched hockey for decades and, you know, never, never really thinking,
11:02geez, look at all the offsides they're missing, you know, and it just, you just accepted it.
11:08You know, and now to have that long wait, they score the goal, there's a long wait while
11:15they review.
11:16It takes away from the momentum of the game.
11:21It just puts a damper on it for me.
11:23I, we're stuck with it for now and that's that, but, but I don't like it.
11:30Yeah.
11:31I mean, guys, one thing I, you know, Pierre McGuire on our podcast a lot, we'll say that,
11:35you know, he's saying all the time, if the puck touches the blue line on the entry, then
11:39it's in the zone and that will reduce the millimeter reviews, you know?
11:43So maybe they can alter it a bit that way.
11:45I just, I don't know how much they're going to drastically change it, but I'm with you
11:48guys too.
11:49And it's, I think it's ironic.
11:50I mean, the more technology we introduce, the more of a bleep show things become in,
11:54you know, I'd like to see you go back to basics of it.
11:59Definitely.
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12:43Moving on from the Stanley Cup final, there's actually some Bruins news percolating.
12:49Maybe we're going to get into the prediction business right now because none of it has
12:52happened yet.
12:54But this was a big week for goalie movement.
12:58The Darcy Kemper gets traded out to the LA Kings for Pierre-Luc Dubois.
13:03Good luck Washington Capitals dealing with Pierre-Luc Dubois who has been a severe problem
13:07child and an underperformer everywhere he's been and has been kind of swiftly kicked in
13:12the butt out of every market that he's been in with every team that he's been in.
13:16Teams have washed their hands with him.
13:18Maybe he's trying to shoot his way out of every NHL market until he finally gets to
13:22Montreal where he wants to be.
13:23I don't know what he's doing there.
13:26But that's one of the trades and it actually makes it interesting to wonder if there was
13:30discussions about Pierre-Luc Dubois and Linus Allmark, if that was the Kings-Bruins trade
13:36that was broached at the trade deadline or discussed in any way, shape or form.
13:41We also had the New Jersey Devils trading for Jacob Markstrom from the Calgary Flames.
13:47So basically now it really leaves, in my opinion, the Ottawa Senators as the only team that
13:54would be a logical trade partner for Linus Allmark.
13:57I remember going on Ottawa radio in the middle of last year and they were asking me all kinds
14:02of questions about Linus Allmark.
14:04I think they have been viewing this as a target and as a player they've really want for a
14:09long time now.
14:11And it looks like it could happen.
14:13Certainly there's a lot of rumors out there about it.
14:17And whether Alfredson has kind of convinced Linus Allmark to waive his no-trade, if there's
14:23a contract extension involved before he's going to agree to go, what they're going to
14:28be able to get from Ottawa, is Jacob Chickren involved, is one of their first-round picks
14:32involved, how much of a haul is Don Sweeney going to get for Linus Allmark.
14:37Just I'll open it up to both of you guys.
14:39Mark, I guess you first.
14:42Anything that you guys have heard one way or the other, a feeling that you have what
14:46is going to happen here, and whether this is going to be a done deal.
14:50And also I will tip the hat to you, Mark.
14:52I think you reported what was yesterday that the Bruins and Brandon Bussey are working
14:56on a contract extension which would also play right into locking him up before you trade
15:01Linus Allmark away so you have your backup goaltender all set to go when you pull the
15:06trigger on the deal.
15:08Yeah, well, as far as that goes, Bussey, Brandon Bussey, he has no leverage.
15:13He's a restricted free agent.
15:16He's pretty much got to take what they're offering, which will be close to the league
15:22minimum as a guy who's never played a game in the league.
15:26And that's fine.
15:27That's fine.
15:28That'll go well with the mammoth contract that Jeremy Swayman's going to sign when they
15:34finally sign.
15:35That's true.
15:36That's true.
15:37Every penny counts, right?
15:38Yes.
15:39But as far as Allmark, I don't have any insight or sources as to what's going to happen.
15:47Something's going to happen.
15:50We got that deadline coming up.
15:53The last day of the month, they owe him a million dollars.
15:58The Bruins do, if he's still with them.
16:02So I got to think that something's going to happen by then.
16:07They're not going to want to pay, here's a million bucks, now you're not going to play
16:12for us anymore.
16:13I don't think that's going to happen.
16:14Right.
16:15Great point.
16:16But the handwriting appears to be on the wall here in both Boston and in Ottawa.
16:27I think Don Sweeney, even though he may protest that he doesn't have a problem with keeping
16:33the two goalie tandem, ideally, they would trade Allmark and get some assets in return.
16:43And Swayman steps in as the starter.
16:47And on the flip side, Steve Staos, a first-time GM in Ottawa, he's got to get this right.
16:54He can't make a bad deal, or what's perceived to be a bad deal.
16:58He needs to fix his goaltending situation, and Allmark would be just the guy to do it,
17:04in my opinion.
17:06As far as getting a haul, I don't know.
17:09I feel like they're going to get less than maybe, I don't know, people might think.
17:16Well, put it this way.
17:18Do you think they would get less than what Calgary got for Markstrom?
17:23Geez, I hope not, because I don't think Calgary got that much.
17:27I mean, they got their first-round pick, though, right?
17:31They got the 10-2 draw pick.
17:33They did.
17:34And if Boston could get a first-round pick, especially, I have my doubts that they're
17:39going to give them one that's in the top 10, like this year.
17:44But a first-rounder, the guy I would love to see, and I'm probably, it's too much of
17:49a reach, probably, is Shane Pinto.
17:55If they could get him in return, that solves, at least partially solves, Boston's center
18:03deficiency.
18:04He's still got to go out, I think, and sign one in free agency, a top-line guy.
18:11I'd love to have Shane Pinto.
18:15I suspect the Bruins would feel that way.
18:18But I think I saw early some speculation that maybe a first-rounder, a roster player, and
18:28maybe a prospect.
18:29I don't think they're getting that much, but I could be wrong.
18:35But I think it's sometime between now and the last day of this month, I think it seems
18:42pretty apparent that something's going to happen on that front.
18:45Yeah.
18:46I agree.
18:47I think the writing does seem to be on the wall, especially with the reports out there
18:52from multiple places that he would waive his no trade to go to Ottawa.
18:56It's gotten to that point.
18:57I think once that happens, and once they've kind of, at least in part, agreed to whatever
19:03the return is going to be, then it becomes, are you going to work out an extension beforehand,
19:09like all those other details?
19:11But it seems like some of the principal stuff has already been sort of hammered out, or
19:16at least they're in lockstep to some degree with.
19:19Murph, your thoughts on this?
19:23In my opinion, I think it makes sense.
19:27Like I said before, I think this is the only place they could trade him to now.
19:29I don't think there are many other teams that are really desperate for goaltending where
19:33they're going to give up a lot in exchange for them right now.
19:36We're talking about a team in Ottawa that was 30th out of 31 teams, or 31st out of 32
19:41teams in save percentage.
19:44Was it Anton Forsberg and the guy that came from Columbus?
19:47Bogard.
19:48Yeah.
19:49No, that's Bogard and then they had Corpusallo.
19:50Corpusallo, yes.
19:51Not from Columbus.
19:52Yeah.
19:53They were terrible, the both of them.
19:57They need somebody in there who can actually stop pucks.
20:01Bruins, their entire talented young core group, where they've got a lot of talent on
20:06that team, they've got good pieces they're putting together, and people had predicted
20:09that they were actually going to be a breakout team last year, and their goaltending completely
20:13submarine them.
20:14They are very desperate for goaltending help.
20:17I just wonder, and I had heard Pinto, the name that you mentioned, Mark, as somebody
20:23that Bruins might be interested in or might be changing hands, but the other name you
20:27hear a lot is Jacob Chikren, which would be interesting.
20:31I think that would really solidify the Bruins' top four if that kind of guy came to Boston
20:37in that trade.
20:38Well, I'll tell you, based on what I've heard, guys, I think the only other team that is
20:43of recently, within the last few days to a week, that was interested was Detroit, but
20:49I think they got the sense, from what I'm told, that they were not really liking what
20:54Allmark is looking for in an extension right now, because they've got Sebastian Kosa coming
20:59soon, and they're looking to him in the future, but they wanted to get a guy, I think for
21:03one year here, who could maybe assure, they're kind of like in a spot that Otto is in, right?
21:07Everyone looked at them as a breakout team as well that would make the playoffs, potentially.
21:10They didn't.
21:11So they want to make sure that they can secure that playoff spot this year, and I think that
21:15was the idea in bringing Allmark in there if they could, but it doesn't look like that
21:18will happen.
21:19As for Otto, I'm with you.
21:20I mean, for all the reasons you said there, it makes sense for them.
21:24This is a team that I think it's playoffs or bust in that market right now, because,
21:28you know, guys, they're not the only team that's done this, but we've seen teams, when
21:32they're trying to win their market back, win their fans back, sometimes they maybe build
21:35expectations too high, and I think that's what happened with Otto there, and they got
21:39burned by it.
21:40I think you guys brought up Pinto, too.
21:42Let's not forget, he was out for, what, a quarter of a season with that suspension.
21:47That hurt them as well.
21:48So there were a lot of things, it was like a perfect storm of everything happening, or
21:50Murphy's Law, so to speak, that went wrong for Ottawa last year, so I think they want
21:55to make sure that they can get over the hump now and make the playoffs with that talented
21:58roster in front of their goalie.
22:01For the return, guys, I'm with you, Joe.
22:03I agree with you, Mark.
22:05I think Pinto would be great, and I know the Bruins have been interested in him.
22:08I just don't know if Ottawa budges on that.
22:10I think they want to keep him.
22:11They see him as part of their future, but Chicker and I know has been out there for
22:16a year, even dating back to last offseason.
22:18They were poking around, seeing if there was interest in him.
22:22So I think that makes a lot more sense right now, and I'm with you, Joe.
22:25I think it secures the top four there.
22:27You maybe can move him next to Carlo and slide Lindholm in with McAvoy, or vice versa.
22:32So it gives you a lot of versatility, I think, that you didn't have on the left side.
22:37And people still forget, and people forget he's just 26 years old, Chicker, and it seems
22:41like he's been around forever.
22:43Because he came into the league at 18, 19, he was pretty young when he broke into the
22:47NHL.
22:48And I remember he dropped in that initial draft when everybody thought he was going
22:51to be top 10, and I think he dropped out of the top 10.
22:54But very talented player, obviously can move the puck inoffensively, can do some things.
23:00He definitely was one of the players that paid the price for the bad goaltending last
23:05year when you look at the plus minus.
23:07And he's been on bad teams for most of his NHL career, so that's going to color some
23:12of the numbers that he has.
23:14I know there was definitely interest, obviously, when Bruce Cassidy was the coach in the Bruins,
23:18because there's history between Butchie and Chicker and his dad.
23:23But I still think that's a player that the Bruins have had some level of interest in
23:26for a long time.
23:28So it would be interesting if that kind of thing materializes when and if the Olmark
23:35deal gets done.
23:36I do like what you mentioned, Mark, about the money at the end of the month.
23:40I hadn't even thought about that or even looked into that.
23:45It makes sense anyway.
23:46I think they'd want to get the deal done if they're going to trade him before July 1st
23:50anyway, just to have cost certainty as to how much they're going to be able to spend
23:55come free agency time.
23:58Looking ahead to July 1st and to free agency, Mark, any free agents or anybody with the
24:06Bruins that you get a strong sense is going to return or somebody out there that you
24:11think they really like that they want to bring in?
24:16I haven't heard anything about Jake DeBrusque in weeks.
24:25I saw some things about Toronto and DeBrusque having mutual interest in each other.
24:31But as far as the Bruins, I think Jake's going to the market as we expected.
24:43So I don't know.
24:45The center in Vancouver that they had eyes for during the season, I would expect him
24:52to be a top target.
24:57I don't know what his expectation would be as far as a contract, $7 million a year, $8
25:07million a year.
25:08I don't know.
25:09I think he's going to command a high price.
25:14Maybe it'll be a little reduced since he did not have a great season.
25:17The year that he had this year between Calgary and Vancouver was not good.
25:24Maybe that lowers a little just because he's not coming off his 40 goal, 82 points or whatever
25:28it was he did with Calgary a couple of years ago, but he did have a good playoff and centers
25:34are always going to get paid, the top guys anyway.
25:37I've mentioned before that I think Brady Shea would be a good Bruin.
25:48If they get Chikorin, then you got too many D. Somebody's maybe going to have to go out
25:56the door in that case, and maybe that opens up other trade possibilities, although I don't
26:01know who that would be.
26:03Who would they be willing to trade at this point that's on the D?
26:08I don't think there's a lot of candidates that they'd want to unload, but I've always
26:13liked his game.
26:18I think it'll be Don Sweeney and the Bruins doing what they do a lot of times, which is
26:26sign guys that maybe you never even thought of as free agents, guys that you didn't expect
26:33or know that they had interest in.
26:38I would look to be surprised on July 1 with maybe not top line guys in that category,
26:48but depth guys, second line type guys.
26:55I won't be surprised if that's how it pans out, but who knows?
26:59I wouldn't be surprised, but I would probably be a little disappointed if that's the way
27:04it goes, like standard operating procedure for Don Sweeney and the management group because
27:09they have so much cap space and money.
27:12I would hope they shoot higher than that instead of the diamond and the rough guys.
27:17Admittedly, they hit on those guys.
27:19They do a really good job with those guys, but I also feel like on some level, when you
27:24continuously do that year over year, you have a team full of third line forwards.
27:30I think if they get their top line center, that gives them a little bit of wiggle room
27:38to sign a guy or two that fits into that kind of dark horse cast, especially if they lose
27:44DeBrusque.
27:45I think they need to spend to get another primary scoring guy in here.
27:51If Jake DeBrusque is gone, which I think we all think that's going to happen, I'm not
27:57going to be surprised at all if he signs with a Canadian market, whether it's Toronto
28:00or he goes out west closer where his dad and his family are.
28:05I feel like the Canadian teams covet him and maybe it's because he's NHL second generation
28:13and his dad's in the broadcasting business, whatever, but he seems to carry a lot of value
28:18with a lot of those teams, even beyond his obvious skills.
28:22I just think some team's going to spend a lot of money for him and maybe regret it just
28:27because of his consistency.
28:28If you give him six, seven years at a big dollar amount, I don't love the consistency
28:35being there for him.
28:36I don't love the day-to-day concentration and focus and dedication being there for him
28:42if you give him that kind of money.
28:43I think the Bruins knew that.
28:45I think that's part of the reason he's not coming back.
28:49The first time he hits a 12 or 15-game stretch without a goal, those teams will be asking
28:58themselves, what were we thinking?
29:19Murph, free agency coming up, anybody you feel strongly about, either incumbent players
29:42that you think are definitely going to be back or free agents that you think may get
29:47targeted by the Bruins?
29:49Well, guys, I look at this.
29:50I agree.
29:51Let's say they get Chikrin here, where they fill that left defense spot they want to,
29:57and so they're using free agency to find a center.
29:59I look at the list there, and I'm not that impressed.
30:03I don't see, other than Lindholm, a guy that really jumps out to me that has the potential
30:07to come in and be that star number one center that you want.
30:10I think that's going to be done through a trade somehow.
30:13I think Don Sweeney, over the course of his tenure here in Boston as GM, he's done a lot
30:19better in trades than he has in signings.
30:22Going back to what Mark said, let's say going back to what Mark said, where maybe they use
30:31free agency to plug in holes, so to speak, on more one-year deals and do what they did
30:36last year.
30:37Maybe they get that center through a trade, and then they still have a little money left
30:40over to sprinkle in those guys that Mark's alluding to there on one-year deals.
30:46One guy I wonder if they take a chance on.
30:47I know he's old.
30:48I know he's at the end of his career, but once he got healthy and he got on a little
30:53roll there in Detroit, it's Patrick Kane.
30:56They've had interest in him before.
30:58If DeBrusk leaves, you bring him in on a one-year deal to add some scoring, who knows?
31:02Who knows?
31:03I'd be interested to see if they circle back on him.
31:07Wouldn't that be something?
31:08Yeah.
31:09I think that would excite the fan base.
31:12Even if it's a one-year deal, lots of bonuses or something, who knows?
31:17I think that's a primary scoring kind of guy, too.
31:20You could say he could come in and make things happen.
31:23He drives lines, drives shifts when he's out there, makes other players better.
31:27Yeah.
31:28Scoring type of experience.
31:31My concern with the Bruins, and this was what I saw with the roster last year, is when you
31:35did the exercise of how many first-line players do you see on that forward group?
31:40How many second-line players do you see in that forward group?
31:43How many third-line players do you see in that forward group or bottom six forwards?
31:46There were a lot of bottom six, third-line forwards in that group.
31:52More than six, more than three.
31:53They were playing above their potential a lot.
31:56We saw what happened in the playoffs where they came back to reality and everything evened
32:00off.
32:02I would definitely put Patrick Kane, even at his elder state now, in a top six position,
32:09capable of it anyway, especially as he gets removed from the hip surgery that he had.
32:15Presumably could be even better next year, this coming year, than he was last year when
32:20he was first coming back from the surgery.
32:21I think that's interesting.
32:26Anything else, Cook and Murph?
32:28As far as the Bruins go, anything that you have on the radar right now?
32:33I think one thing, guys, that obviously we know they want is to get back in the first
32:37round.
32:38I don't know if they're able to do that in this Hallmark trade.
32:40If they can't, does Sweeney find another way to do that?
32:43I think that's a big goal for them.
32:46Okay, let's say he doesn't do it for this draft.
32:48He wants to do it for next year.
32:49He wants to start to get more first-round picks and build them.
32:53I'm interested to see between now and when he speaks to the media next Thursday in Vegas,
32:59if he's acquired a first-round pick, whether it's this year or next year.
33:03Mark, anything else on your mind or at the front, as far as the Bruins go, heading into
33:10the draft next week in free agency on July 1?
33:13Well, Murph raises a good point about getting in the first round.
33:18I wonder if even a second-round pick this year, they don't even have one, right, obviously.
33:25They don't pick to the fourth, I believe.
33:26Yeah, total fourth, that's right.
33:29They do have to beef up the prospect pool, there's no question about it.
33:35They don't have guys that are going to be NHL-ready in the near future.
33:46Getting a draft pick, even a second-rounder, they'd be better off than not picking in the second.
33:53I don't know what the price would be for that.
33:55I really have no idea.
34:00I think the goalie situation, obviously, has probably taken up a lot of Don Sweeney's time at this point.
34:14With other things like signing other players, it takes a backseat until that is straightened out.
34:22I guess we'll see between now and the draft.
34:26Mark, can I ask you a Providence Bruins question here?
34:32In discussing DeBrusque, talking about him, and potentially moving on, I think we see that,
34:38sort of reading the tea leaves, that's the most likely outcome here is that he's going to sign somewhere else
34:43and go for bigger money, bigger term, probably elsewhere.
34:47Is Fabian Lysell a guy that the Bruins could or should view as an in-house candidate
34:56to potentially be a top six guy next year?
35:00Is that something that you think would be possible, or too much to ask based on what we saw out of him
35:06and the progressions we saw out of him last year in Providence,
35:09where obviously there were some ups and downs, but it seemed like it was on a bit of a positive trajectory
35:15towards the end of the year.
35:17I think asking him to be a top six forward next year is a bridge too far for him.
35:23I think starting him lower in the lineup, I think that's the way to go.
35:32But I think it's time to find out with him exactly where do we stand.
35:39He's got two years pro under his belt.
35:42The results have been good at times, not so good at other times, like a lot of young players,
35:48but I think it's time to give him a shot and see what happens.
35:54Then you'll have a better idea where he might fit down the road.
35:59I think ideally he's a top six forward down the road, but whether that fits with reality remains to be seen.
36:09I think he certainly has tremendous speed and a lot of skill,
36:14but all the parts of his game have to fit together, and to this point they don't right now.
36:21So I think training camp will be interesting to see what do they do.
36:27They're not going to come out and say, OK, this guy's got a job on the NHL roster.
36:34No, they never do that.
36:36They're not going to do that.
36:39Does he make the team as a bottom six guy to start?
36:44That wouldn't surprise me.
36:46Like I said, I think it's time to find out.
36:48If you plug him in there on the third or the fourth line and he falls on his face, OK, that's one thing.
36:55But if you plug him in there and he starts to get it, OK, this is what you have to do if you want to be an NHL player.
37:03This is where you start.
37:05They got a guy in the room in Brad Marshad who started on the fourth line, right?
37:1220 games without a point in his first 20 games.
37:16There's a guy that can – I'm not saying Marshad's going to mentor this kid.
37:23I'm not saying that at all.
37:25But there's someone there to look to that realizes that he had to adapt his game to make it.
37:37And I think Lysell is going to have to adapt his game.
37:42He's not going to be Brad Marshad, but he certainly has the potential to be a skilled scoring forward.
37:50And I think now it's time to find out where does he stand?
37:55So that will be something to look – a storyline to look forward to in training camp, no question.
38:00I still remember that stretch that you're talking about of one goal in 20 games when I think right before he got called up,
38:07he and Vladimir Subotka got into a huge brawl down in Providence.
38:12The one thing I remember about that is he finally scored.
38:21And the next day I was at practice and I said to somebody, like, hey, did you see Marshad got his first goal last night?
38:30And the guy – I'm not going to say who responded, but the answer was, Jesus, it's about freaking time.
38:36That was the answer.
38:38So, you know, everyone – you've got to start somewhere.
38:43Everyone starts at some point, and I think it's time with Lysell to see where does he stand.
38:50Mark, did you think, you know, we know the coaching staff challenged him like halfway through the season there, right?
38:56And said he needed to play more of a two-way game, buy-in and all that.
39:01Did you get the feel at the end of the year that they had felt that he had done that better, so to speak?
39:07I think they did, and I think he did.
39:09I think his play picked up after that.
39:12The injury that he had when he fell into the boards, you know, and kept him out for a long time.
39:20You know, I think he would have played – he would have played NHL games by the end of the season.
39:26Yeah.
39:27I think they would have brought him up, you know, just to see.
39:31But that set him back, and then, you know, he was only able to come back for one playoff game.
39:38You know, and then, you know, he sat out the last game, which, you know, I think was a disappointment to them
39:45that he didn't kind of suck it up and play through the injury, but he didn't.
39:50And, you know, now he heads into training camp next season, and, you know, it's – I'm sure he was disappointed
40:01to not have the opportunity to get his first NHL game or two in at the end last season.
40:08But I think that opportunity is coming, you know, as soon as October of this year.
40:14Yeah.
40:15Well, it will be interesting.
40:17I can say Fabian Lysell, I'm not sure, has had the best training camps with the Bruins since he's come into the organization.
40:27So he's going to have to sort of change that sort of pattern and what's happened there in the last couple of years.
40:33I feel like his camps have not been great.
40:35So, like, maybe with a little more on the line and being that close, it'll be a different story this time around.
40:42But it'll be interesting to see what happens.
40:44Merv and Mark, thank you very much for joining us.
40:46Thank you.
40:47Thanks, guys.
40:48And everybody else out there, thanks for listening.
40:50We'll see you at the rink.