Kalman: Without Soderberg, Bruins Will Likely Lean On Young Centers
BOSTON (CBS) -- The clamoring from the masses for the Bruins to remake their bottom two lines has been heard and the reinvention is underway.
Several media reports confirmed over the weekend the that Bruins will not be pursuing a return engagement with center Carl Soderberg, who's scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent July 1 after he scored 13 goals in 82 games in 2014-15.
Soderberg's goal total dropped by three from his first full NHL season in 2013-14. Although his presence as a third center was a strength for the Bruins, even when he was in a scoring slump, Soderberg didn't do nearly enough to help the Bruins when they were without center David Krejci for half the season. When he was cast as a top-two center, Soderberg often looked intimidated and out of place, two things that rarely showed up when he was in his comfort zone on the third line. He made a large impact on the Bruins' power play the past two years with 10 man-advantage goals, but he didn't kill penalties and was a sore spot on faceoffs.
Despite his shortcomings, Soderberg should be able to at least triple his NHL salary-cap hit of a little more than $1 million in free agency this summer if he decides to remain in North America. The Bruins received the benefit of having a player like Soderberg at a cap-friendly hit for two seasons plus a couple months. But with their restrictions underneath the salary-cap ceiling, the Bruins couldn't keep Soderberg around at market rate.
Combined with the Bruins' announcement shortly after the season ended that they wouldn't be re-signing fourth-line center Gregory Campbell, the Soderberg news means the Bruins are committed to going cheaper, and maybe younger, in the slots behind Krejci and Patrice Bergeron on the depth chart.
Here's a quick look at the Bruins' current options for filling in those two center spots:
1. Ryan Spooner
Ray Romano is jealous about how much everybody loves Spooner right now.
The 23-year-old earned everyone's adulation with eight goals and 18 points in 24 games after a February call-up from Providence of the American Hockey League. Spooner, however, still had issues in the defensive end and on faceoffs. But he wasn't able to be part of a lineup that featured a healthy Krejci and was playing under the intense pressure of Boston's push to avoid being left out of the playoffs. He showed maturity by not hanging his head after his early-season failure to stick with Boston and his speed and vision, not to mention an underrated shot, make him a weapon the Bruins could use. Best of all, he should come cheap as a restricted free agent because the Bruins are only obligated to give him a qualifying offer of 105 percent of his $760,000 salary-cap hit from last season. They should be able to get him back in the lineup for less than a million.
General manager Don Sweeney has known Spooner a long time and seems to be one of the leaders of the Spooner love fest. But as a new GM trying to get the Bruins out of Peter Chiarelli's cap jail, Sweeney might be forced to use Spooner as a trade chip.
2. Alexander Khokhlachev
Bruins observers have been waiting for "Koko" to make a big splash for so long, it's hard to believe he'll still just be 22 when training camp opens in the fall. For all the talk of improving his two-way game last season, though, Koko wasn't able to make any impact in the NHL when he was called upon.
If he's not dealt, Koko will have one last chance to prove he can play in the NHL and play within the Bruins' system. His offensive gifts have blossomed in the AHL. It's time for him to take the next step, in Boston or elsewhere. Ideally, Spooner and Koko as the Bruins' bottom-two centers, with veteran help from the likes of Chris Kelly, Reilly Smith and Max Talbot on the wings, would make the Bruins a multi-line threat again and open up cap room for Sweeney to address other issues.
However, Koko has to make the same type of commitment next season that Spooner made in the second half of this season.
3. The Others
Talbot and Kelly could center the fourth line if some of the Bruins' younger wingers win jobs in the fall. Matt Lindblad had an injury-riddled season with Providence, but the Bruins have always liked his grit and hockey sense. He can play both center and wing and should be a factor at training camp. The Bruins might have to go really young if Colby Cave or Austin Czarnik, who signed as free agents in the spring and are 20 and 22 respectively, make an impact in their first NHL training camps under contract. Then there's Joonas Kemppainen, who was a two-way center and faceoff standout in Finland before signing with the Bruins last month.
Sweeney has a couple of months to address the bottom two center slots either from within or from the outside. There's going to be a lot of maneuvering if reports of the load of cash it's going to take to retain defenseman Dougie Hamilton are true. And Sweeney knows that he has to get a head start on changing some of his personnel to fit the change in style he wants to implement.
With another summer of improvement, two Bruins draft picks – Spooner and Koko – might be able to provide the type of cheap production Boston needs.
Matt Kalman covers the Bruins for CBSBoston.com and also contributes to NHL.com and several other media outlets. Follow him on Twitter @TheBruinsBlog.
