The Bruins Might Be Done Adding To The Defense
By Matt Dolloff, CBS Boston
BOSTON (CBS) -- Boston Bruins general manager Don Sweeney uttered two words that should frighten and disappoint anyone who had high hopes for the team upgrading their defense in the offseason: "by committee."
One of sports media's smelliest BS phrases, one that should rarely spill out of a GM's mouth, "by committee" and its variances is almost always a euphemism for "we have no viable option." It's akin to John Farrell saying the Red Sox have five No. 1 starters, when in actuality, five = zero. When Rex Ryan said he had three potential starting quarterbacks, he really meant zero.
After extending Torey Krug and re-signing John-Michael Liles to a two-year deal, Sweeney now has five defensemen (Liles, Krug, Zdeno Chara, Kevan Miller, Adam McQuaid) under contract for 2016-17 and an opening apparently up for grabs. Deeply stocked with defensive prospects, Sweeney has repeatedly said the Bruins want to give their young talent a real opportunity to make the roster - so it's likely that, barring a whopper of a move, the Bruins' offseason for the defense is done.
"Well, again, I think [the defense] is going to be by committee," said Sweeney during his press conference announcing Krug's extension. "Obviously, if we can bring in a guy as-advertised as you described, no matter what the acquisition costs are, if it lines up we're in a position to do that. The flexibility we have is there to be able to continue to explore and improve our team in any way, shape or form.
"If it's internal like I mentioned, then we're going to continue to do that — we have players that can emerge in that sense, with a puck possession game and transition game comes in different forms."
As much as the Bruins could use a "transitional" defenseman to make good first passes out of the defensive zone, the team's biggest need on the back end remains actual defense in their own end - especially in front of their own net, where opponents routinely abused them last season. The Bruins may have young players who, while inexperienced, may be able to contribute in that department in 2016-17 - but Sweeney sounded unsure of who would deliver that much-needed defensive help.
"It's not just about a shut-down [defender]; I think it's going to be team-wide, as it always has been," said Sweeney. "Claude's system dictates that players play 200-feet and we'll be better at it. We're excited to be working, bringing back some of these younger players and what we tried to do last year in the teaching part of it, so that's going to be a whole team concept."
Inside the organization, 2015 second-round pick Brandon Carlo may have the best chance to give the Bruins a 200-foot effort as soon as next season. The 6-foot-5 Carlo skates well for his size and projects as a solid stay-at-home defenseman, with a little upside as a puck-mover. Considering the Bruins' serious need to clear out the front of the net better, Carlo should at least get an opportunity to prove himself in that department.
23-year-old right-shot defenseman Colin Miller still has some upside and would ideally jump to the top pairing with Chara. But as a rookie, Miller played himself out of the Bruins lineup by the end of the season with repeated turnovers and missed assignments in his own end. The Bruins still hope for him to take a step - or in their case, a giant leap - forward in his second NHL season.
"We think very highly of Colin," assistant general manager Scott Bradley told Fluto Shinzawa of the Boston Globe just a week ago. "If he takes another step, he could be a regular. He could be a PP guy. We're excited about Colin to make the jump and be a regular."
The Bruins are deeply stocked with other prospects and potential NHL-ready defensemen like Joe Morrow, Jakub Zboril, Matt Grzelcyk, Jeremy Lauzon, Rob O'Gara, and 2016 draft picks Charlie McAvoy and Ryan Lindgren. Most of these players are likely at least two years away from cracking the NHL lineup, but Sweeney would not rule out any of them getting a chance. When asked if he's comfortable with some of their younger defensemen taking on bigger roles next season, he replied, "Well I would certainly think so."
Despite the rumors that flew around in the last couple of weeks - that the Bruins were preparing an offer sheet for Jacob Trouba, trying to trade for Kevin Shattenkirk, and even "kicking the tires" on a possible deal with free agent Kris Russell - the Bruins appear to be moving forward with the defense they have right now. Adding another defenseman via free agency or a trade would, at this point, be counterproductive to the promises Sweeney has made to give their prospects a legit chance to make an impact on the team.
Despite the lack of fireworks, the Bruins did improve the defense from last season. Though it would have been hard not to get better on defense after last season, they have. Krug is only 25 and still has room to grow, and Liles will contribute more to the team than glorified AHL players like Zach Trotman and Matt Irwin did when shoehorned into the lineup last season. They'll be in a better position to add defensemen in two years when Chara and Liles come off the books - it's simply looking much less likely that the big move the Bruins need is happening this summer.
Ultimately, if the Bruins end up empty-handed in their search for a top-pairing defenseman, it wouldn't be the team's biggest mistake of the past two years. It would be granting a mind-numbing four-year extension to Adam McQuaid last offseason, then kicking off the 2016 offseason with an extension for Kevan Miller. It would be needlessly trading away the picks they could have used to trade or move down in the draft. It would be holding on to Loui Eriksson all the way until he reached unrestricted free agency, failing to move him for a defenseman at the trade deadline or even trade his rights for a low-level draft pick.
The Bruins put themselves in this unenviable position, and while they still have the flexibility to make a big move within the next two seasons, the quick fix you may have hoped for does not appear to be on the horizon. Chara and Liles are essentially veteran stopgaps for the Bruins' plethora of gestating young talent and Sweeney does not appear ready to move major assets for defensive help. If the Bruins enter the season with what they have now, you may view it as the very definition of insanity, and you may be right - but if their younger defensemen start to pan out, maybe their strategy won't look so crazy.
Bruins president Cam Neely preached patience in his season-ending press conference. Sweeney said the team didn't need a major overhaul. That right there should have told you that the fireworks weren't coming this year. For the Bruins defense as currently constituted, what you see is what you got. And what you've got is something you never want: a committee.
Matt Dolloff is a writer for CBSBostonSports.com. His opinions do not necessarily reflect that of CBS or 98.5 The Sports Hub. Have a news tip or comment for Matt? Follow him on Twitter @mattdolloff and email him at mdolloff@985thesportshub.com.
