One of the reasons the Boston Bruins are third in the Atlantic Division is that most of their offseason additions have paid off in one way or another.
While a breakout season from Morgan Geekie, consistently elite play from David Pastrnak and improved goaltending from Jeremy Swayman have played huge roles in the Bruins performing surprisingly well, GM Don Sweeney’s additions have been solid.
For starters, left wing Viktor Arvidsson – acquired this past summer from the Edmonton Oilers for a fifth-round draft pick – has seven goals and 13 points in 24 games. Three of those goals are game-winners. At a $4 million cap hit, the 32-year-old isn’t exactly cheap, but he’s making the most of averaging 14:32 of ice time, and he’s giving great value for the trade price Sweeney paid for him.
Another Bruins offseason addition – former Columbus Blue Jackets forward Sean Kuraly, who signed at the relative bargain of $1.85 million per year on a two-year contract – is a crucial part of Boston’s penalty kill.
The Bruins’ penalty-kill rate is the ninth best in the league thus far at 82.5 percent, and Kuraly is averaging 3:09 of penalty-kill time. Only veteran defenseman Nikita Zadorov (3:16) is averaging more PK time than Kuraly.
Finally, forward Alex Steeves – a fringe NHLer with the Toronto Maple Leafs for the past four years – was signed to a one-year contract at $850,000 this past summer. While Steeves came into the season with only 14 career NHL games to his credit, he has eight points in 15 games since being called up in early November, including three multi-point games. The 26-year-old is making the most of the opportunity and carving out a role for himself at the NHL level.
Now, not every addition Sweeney made has exactly thrived.
Left wing Tanner Jeannot was signed to a five-year contract at a salary-cap hit of $3.4 million, but he’s generated only three goals and 12 points in 31 games this season. But given that Sweeney has more hits than misses when it comes to offseason changes, Bruins fans have to be happy with where this Boston team is right now.
The newcomers to the Bruins have taken some pressure off the other veterans, such as Pastrnak and Elias Lindholm, and it shows. Boston is a better-balanced group than the underperforming team we saw last season.
If they can continue getting contributions from up and down the lineup, earning a playoff berth won’t be too tall a task.
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