The Boston Bruins caught lightning in a bottle last season when they signed Danton Heinen to a professional tryout (PTO). This marked a return to the Bruins for Heinen, a fourth-round pick by the team in 2014. This PTO eventually led to a one-year contract for Heinen, who would outperform his $775,000 deal by just about every metric. He turned that one-year prove-it deal into a sizeable pay raise this offseason when signing a two-year, $4.5 million contract with the Vancouver Canucks. What many people don’t mention is that the Bruins also brought in Alex Chiasson on a PTO last offseason. Though the team didn’t sign him to a contract, it was still worth a spot in camp to see if there was a fit between player and organization.
When the Bruins signed Tyler Johnson to a PTO on Saturday, many immediately drew parallels to the Heinen situation. It’s fair to connect the dots, especially considering the Bruins would have so much success with Heinen just last season. It’s also reasonable, however, to speculate that the Bruins might still be open to bringing in more bodies to camp on PTOs if they feel there are good opportunities available on the open market. This is where a player like Blake Wheeler comes into play.
On the surface, this might sound like a bit of a stretch. Wheeler, a former Bruins forward, spent the 2023-24 season with the New York Rangers and scored nine goals and 21 points in 54 games. Unfortunately for Wheeler, his season was cut short due to a significant leg injury in February, which kept him out of action for the remainder of the regular season and all but one postseason contest.
Factoring in his leg injury, his accelerated age at 38 years old and comments made following the Rangers’ elimination from the Eastern Conference Final about wanting to be around for his three children during their childhood, and it’s unclear if Wheeler even wants to suit up for another game in the NHL. At the same time, the veteran hasn’t officially announced his retirement from hockey and might still be exploring options.
Wheeler Could Provide Insurance for the Bruins
Though he had a down season in his lone year with the Rangers, Wheeler has consistently been excellent with the Winnipeg Jets, even during his later years with the team. Availability has become somewhat of an issue for Wheeler, who suited up in 71, 50, 65, 72 and 54 games in the last five seasons respectively. Still, his ability to score upwards of 15-20 goals and produce at nearly a point-per-game rate shouldn’t be discounted. Whether his offensive production with the Rangers was the exception or the rule is unclear, but this is what makes a PTO such a valuable tool for teams to explore.
If Wheeler still wants to test the waters and explore the potential for another NHL season, what better place to do it than with the team he broke out with back in 2008 as a rookie? For Wheeler, it would be a chance to get back on the ice without fully committing to another full season. For the Bruins, this would be an opportunity to see what Wheeler still has to offer while also providing another veteran body to compete out of training camp. In a camp that will heavily feature Georgii Merkulov and Fabian Lysell competing for roster spots, having veteran fallback options like Wheeler or Johnson could be invaluable if either or both rookies are unable to claim a roster spot for opening night
For many, the idea of bringing in a 38-year-old to compete with players in their early 20s may not seem like the best strategy. At the same time, this is a results-driven business, and while general manager Don Sweeney and co. would love for their young players to jump into big-time roles as soon as possible, it’s never a bad idea to have an insurance policy in place just in case. There are no guarantees with PTOs, only opportunities. For the Bruins, Wheeler, Johnson, and any other player the team may look to bring in on a PTO, these opportunities could go a long way.
