When the Boston Bruins cleaned out their belongings at Warrior Ice Arena on Thursday morning, they met with the media. It will be the final time that some members of the Black and Gold will step foot into Warrior Ice Arena again, as there are several upcoming free agents.
What direction general manager Don Sweeney decides to go in with them remains to be seen. There are going to be some tough decisions that are going to have to be made, but that is the nature of the business this time of the year.
After missing the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time in nine years, this feels like a make-or-break off-season for Sweeney and the Bruins front office. Two forwards who are restricted free agents (RFAs) this summer made it loud and clear on Thursday that they want to remain with the Black and Gold.
RFAs Morgan Geekie and Marat Khusnutdinov made it clear they want to remain with the Bruins
Meeting with the media, forwards Morgan Geekie and Marat Khusnutdinov both made it clear that they want to remain with the Bruins. For Geekie, remaining in Boston is easier said than done. As far as Khusnutdinov goes, it's a lot easier.
In his two years with the Bruins, Geekie has had two career seasons. This season, he scored 33 goals, a number that nobody could have predicted. Not a chance. He also had 24 assists and finished with 57 points, all which were career high's. He nearly doubled his goal total from last season.
The question facing Sweeney is this, was this a sign of things to come, or was it a one-year wonder like Trent Frederic? Does Sweeney go long-term with Geekie or does he get him to agree to a short-term prove it contract? Sweeney will give him an offer sheet, but it is no guarantee that a deal gets done.
As far as Khusnutdinov goes, the sample size with the Bruins was short, but impressive at times. Acquired from the Minnesota Wild at the trade deadline in a deal that sent Justin Brazeau out of town, Khusnutdinov played well at times and showed that he could be a nice addition to the bottom-six.
He used his speed to score a goal against the Ottawa Senators and former Bruins goalie Linus Ullmark, and he played well down the stretch. He won't command as expensive a deal as Geekie will, and he is someone to bring back on a team-friendly deal.
