The Bruins must find a way to retool quickly this offseason.
The Boston Bruins knew that their run of regular-season excellence wouldn't last forever, but they had no way of knowing that it would end so soon. The proud franchise has been experiencing a rapid fall from grace, punctuated by trading their captain, Brad Marchand, to the Florida Panthers at the trade deadline. It hasn't been easy for fans to digest. Still, they can only hope the Bruins' front office will target some trade candidates in the offseason to begin a quick retool and not waste the primes of David Pastrnak, Charlie McAvoy, and Jeremy Swayman.
Bruins could be done with the Casey Mittelstadt experiment
The Bruins acquired Casey Mittelstadt in one of their trade deadline deals. The Colorado Avalanche acquired Charlie Coyle to improve their center depth, but it cost them Mittelstadt, Will Zellers, and a second-round draft pick. Mittelstadt has five points in 14 games since being acquired, but is a whopping -15 while playing in the top-six for the duration.
It's a tricky spot for the Bruins. They want to retool in the offseason, as a complete rebuild wouldn't make much sense. However, Boston has to wonder if Mittelstadt is one of the top six centers they want to lead them into the next chapter. The Bruins invested a significant amount of money into Elias Lindholm this past offseason, and he deserves to get a chance in the top six.
The Bruins' best bet is to look for center help that isn't currently in their organization. One could fall in their laps if the draft lottery falls their way, but it could also be through trade. Regardless, Mittelstadt isn't the answer, and it's too much of an investment for the next two seasons at $5.5 million annually. Some might argue that Mittelstadt deserves a more significant chance at the role, but look no further than the Avalanche's decision to see how the rest of the league views him.
The Avalanche had Mittelstadt as their second-line center, but chose to upgrade with Brock Nelson. Coyle was a third-line center playing over his head in Boston as their second-line center, but the Avalanche decided they'd rather have him than Mittelstadt in their bottom six. The Bruins keeping Mittelstadt through the retool would be an egregious decision.
Does Elias Lindholm still have a home in Boston?
Is there a chance the Bruins are regretting their signing of Elias Lindholm? They paid him $54.25 million for the next seven years to be their first or second-line center, and he has been on the third line for most of the year. It's a pricey contract to give a third liner, but he has been playing better lately and may have saved himself some grief from the Boston fanbase.
However, it's worth questioning whether Lindholm wants to stay in Boston. He has a no-movement clause, but it's not a city where you want to struggle. Being the scapegoat in Beantown for the next six years might not be in the Swedish forward's best interest. The massive question is whether there would be a team interested in acquiring Lindholm.
The Vancouver Canucks never wanted to lose Lindholm, but they couldn't afford him after a successful playoffs last season. The contract could fit better now with JT Miller traded to the New York Rangers, and Vancouver needs another center. It'd be interesting to see if the Bruins and Canucks could reach a deal.
Fabian Lysell is another failed Bruins draft pick
The Bruins will always be a punchline for failed draft picks (see the 2015 first round). However, their subsequent drafts weren't much better. Sure, they managed to snag Pastrnak, McAvoy, and Swayman, but as the old saying goes, a blind squirrel finds a nut once in a while. The Don Sweeney and Cam Neely regime is batting much less than 50 percent when it comes to their draft pick success, and the state of the franchise is now their fault.
The Bruins have gone from having the best regular season record in league history to a spot in the draft lottery in two years. Their captain and heart-and-soul is playing with their rivals, and the team is a shell of its former self. Lysell has been in the American Hockey League for the last two seasons since coming to North America. Bruins fans waited with bated breath for the call-up, but it never came until Boston had no other options.
Sweeney and Neely attempted to please the fans with Lysell's call-up. There was definite excitement, but the result was zero points in his first eight games. Lysell doesn't seem like someone the Bruins can move forward with, but their development tactics may have already plummeted his trade value. They will get nowhere near the return they could have if they had made the decision earlier, but it might be time to get something for Lysell before he eventually returns to Sweden to play in his country's pro league.
