Welcome to the Bruins Benders podcast, season three, episode 23. Whoa, Nelly, with Maddie and Smitty, brought to you on the Inside the Ring podcast network. InsideTheRing.com is your one-stop shop for your NHL, AHL, and ECHL news, insight, and analysis. Follow on X. At inside underscore the underscore rink. Download the Inside the Rink app for extensive Bruins coverage. If you're watching on YouTube, hit the subscribe button for us. That helps. Yeah, do that.
And there's some information on how to sign up for ESPN+. Yeah, sign up for ESPN Plus by going to InsideTheRink.com slash ESPN. And you can get all the out-of-market NHL games. You can get college hockey. You can get college sports. You can get MMA. Uh, probably some baseball too. I don't know. Maybe. I'm not sure about that. Maybe. Uh, yeah. Sign up anyways. ESPN plus go to inside the rink.com slash ESPN to sign up today. Do you get any of that American rugby?
Do you know there's an American rugby team like right down the street from you? Yeah. They won the whole thing. I just saw, uh, Patrick Chung, I believe the former safety for the Patriots is one of the owners. Oh, is he? Yeah. Oh, I didn't know that. And yeah, the New England Free Jacks. I even know the name of the team. How about that? The Free Jacks. Yeah. Yeah. I don't know. That probably has something to do with like a British. I think, isn't their flag like the something Jack? I don't know.
I think that's what it is. Union Jack. Anyway. I hope so. Yeah. The rugby, American rugby. They, yeah, they won the whole damn thing. I had no idea. I guess people go to the matches. I don't, I don't know where they are. Quincy, Quincy at the veterans Memorial stadium. Oh, not a Marina Bay. No, not on the Bay, not near the water. You can't go and get a, you know, an Irish car bomb and, and, uh, You know, not on the boats. No, no. All right. Can't do that at all.
But hey, it's rapid review time here because we talked the hockey and the Bruins had three games this past week at Tampa Bay, a three to one loss, which is kind of a snooze fest for them. Didn't generate much offense. And then they go to Washington. They win 3-2 in the shootout. And I'll tell you what, Kevin Shattenkirk, of all people, snipes one home to win it. I guess it was goalie Bob Asens' pick was him. Yeah, he's got some skill, Shattenkirk. He really does.
I mean, he's always been kind of an offensive... offensive guy but he's I think he's like almost 40 the shootouts 16 for 43 I believe yeah so I mean not a bad pick no listen to goalie bob a little more yeah sniped at home and then how about this win again at nashville three nothing pretty good effort throughout it was a really solid win for them against the nashville team was white hot at home they won like eight out of nine at home and have been really surging, and the Bruins just have a
really solid defensive effort, and they get three goals in the third, and they win it 3-0. Yeah, 0-0 game going into the third, and the Bruins in the third turn it on a little bit to score a shorthand goal on a great play by Marsha and Charlie Coyle. Uh, and then a fantastic, um, 200 foot play by pasta knock wins a puck in his own zone, carries it the length of the ice finds Heinen at the back door.
And he has unbelievable patience to get it back out in front to Zaka who, who fires into a wide open net, an unbelievable play all the way around. And then they get a late empty netter by pasta. And really a nice, nice way to finish, you know, a nice complete game overall, a great, really good defensive effort, especially in the third. And all those things are the type of things that you want to see at this time of year as we move into the playoffs.
That's the type of game that we've talked about how the Bruins kind of have to win that way in the playoffs is, you know, play a tight game, you know, play solid defensively, try to bang in your chances and then win the game in the third. And that's going to be a recipe for success if they can do that. Can't on gun teams, can't try to outscore teams, can't be loose in the end. Can't have subpar goaltending. Can't have any of that.
But if they do this type of thing, as they did against Nashville, then they're in good shape if they can win that way. Yeah, their defensive structure for sure is going to be one of the key recipes for their success because they don't have the depth of scoring that they've had the past few years. So they're going to have to be more focused on the defensive end and maybe creating turnovers and scoring and transition or offer turnovers. And, you know, specialty teams is going to be huge for them.
The penalty kill has been really good. It'll have to continue to be. And then they got to start out their number one power play. You know, they have too much talent on that unit for it to not come through as much as it should. Absolutely. And speaking of that trio of Heinen, Zaka, Pasternak, the Bruins have outscored opponents 12 to four in the 130 minutes in change of five on five ice time with that trio as a line this season. Yeah, they've been really good.
I think Heinen fits in really well with that line because he can do a lot of dirty things. And he really has a pretty good hockey IQ. He might not have the same type of elite talent as those other guys do, but he does have the hockey IQ to create plays and create offense, you know, as was evident by the pass he made to Zaka to score the second goal against Nashville. Yeah. He fits in really nicely with those guys. And, you know, we talked a little bit.
We haven't talked about it, but a study came out about turnovers across the league and Pasternak was first in the league at turnovers. Marchand is fourth. So I don't think those are guys that you can really play on the same line and have a lot of success. So I think splitting them up is the right thing to do. And this Hein and Zaka Pasternak line seems to have found some chemistry at the right time.
I mean, the Heinen signing has been just a big, just a really, I mean, it's really been an important signing and I thought it was just kind of an extra guy. I mean, it started that way. I mean, he, he didn't even get in, get on the roster for a little bit there and just kind of was skating with him for a while in the beginning of the year. And I thought it was just a guy that not a lot of teams around the league really, really showed much interest in.
And it was a little strange and last year didn't have a great year and I the Bruins kind of pick them up because they're familiar with them. They need some depth. They have young guys in there. They're not sure what they're going to get from them. And all of a sudden, I mean, the guy has just been, this is the best year he's ever had with the Bruins. I mean, he's just been terrific. And now he's a, you know, pretty much a top line guy. Yeah. He'll stay there. He'll stay there for sure.
Cause he's, he's played too well not to, I mean, he's, he's up to 15 goals and 16 assists now, I believe 31 points. which, I mean, other than either his rookie year or his second year in Boston, has been his best year here. So, you know, if that continues, you know, and hopefully it does into the playoffs, you know, it's a really good sign for them. Yeah, of course, his defensive awareness and that type of thing is also in Zaka as well.
And playing those two guys with Pasternak, you know, could make him better. And as you said, you know, he had a great – maybe his best – Well, his most noticeable defensive effort, Pasternak, 200-foot effort all season, really. I mean, he really stood out defensively in an all-around game against Nashville. And maybe that's rubbing off on him with Zach and being in there with him. Seven Sherps is sponsored by Lops Brewing and Lobster Brewing and Tasting Room in downtown Woonsocket, Rhode Island.
Specializing in small batch ales and lagers, open seven days a week. Use the coupon code SPORTS to get 10% off your online order. And go to lopsbrewing.com to do so. Also, follow them on social media at Lops Brewing for new beers and events. And Sherp number one, what are the top three things that win in the playoffs in your opinion? Okay, number one, and I think we probably can all agree on this, is goaltending. You have to get good goaltending or you don't have a chance.
Number two, I would say good specialty teams. You have to have a good PK and you have to have opportunistic power play. And then number three, I would say, you know, a strong defense that is able to get the puck out of their own zone. This is Bruins wise. I think around the league, it might be different team to team. But I think for the Bruins, it's getting the puck out of out of their own zone and transitioning to offense.
If the Bruins can do that, then they will have success in the postseason. Yeah, I mean, I would say goaltending. I would say, you know, specialty teams is an interesting one. In 2011, you know, the Bruins had a terrible power play in one. But I think penalty killing is definitely important, more important than the power play, in my opinion. You have to be good 5-1-5. That team in 2011 was excellent 5-1-5, dominant 5-1-5.
Um, and then the resiliency of being able to handle the ups and downs of a seven game series. Can you bounce back after losing five, one in game two, like that type of thing? Like you need to have, uh, need to be a resilient bunch, uh, to continue to play on. And I mean, you could, you could win the cup like the Bruins did and still lose, you know, 11 games over. I don't even know how many it was. It was a lot of games they lost. Yeah, I mean, we were in a lot of Game 7s that year.
Right, a lot of Game 7s. Three of them, I believe. But those are definitely the things. And goaltending is definitely number one. You saw it with Florida last year. I mean, you know, Alex Lyon in there, and then Bob comes in and settles them down, and they make a run all over the cup final. Yeah, it is. It's a huge thing. And one thing I'll say about the power play is I think there are a lot more penalties called now in the playoffs as... opposed to 2011. There are.
I think it's becoming more important these days than it has been in the past. But I agree with you. I think penalty killing of the two is much more important than scoring on the foul play. Right, for sure.
And hopefully that's something the Bruins can... can do well a chirp too how confident are you in jim montgomery montgomery come playoff time because last year he even admitted himself made some decisions that probably were uh negative and caused the bruins to slip up in that first round well hopefully he learns from his mistakes I'm not uh ultra confident until he proves that he can do it and the team proves they can do it.
I think they've obviously underachieved the last few years and he's been a part of that with making some mistakes with different line combinations and guys playing and goaltending and just a lot of the decisions weren't the greatest. So I think he does have to kind of prove himself here. So I'm not super confident in him going in. But they always say, too, the first round is the toughest one to get through so that they can finally figure out a way to break through here in the first round.
I think they could, you know, they could be a tough out for teams. Sure, they could be. And the thing about Montgomery is he's a tinker with the lines kind of guy. And one thing about Julian, when he was with the Bruins, he kind of rolled his four lines and kind of kept them together. And even through the ups and downs, just sort of had more patience in that way.
And you saw it last year in Game 5 where Montgomery – you know, unexpectedly and really unexplained, just kind of change his lines around up three, one coming home. Like, yeah, that was an adverse situation there.
So, you know, I, that, I think that lately he's been doing some, he's been making some good moves like the Heinen, the Heinen Pasternak Zaka line, you know, he's been playing Wotherspoon and peak, like he's not been just rolling out Grizzly, you know, and all these other guys like continuously just, uh, trying to beat a dead horse with different guys. And so he has been doing, doing that and making some, some decent moves lately.
I just hope that he doesn't get into a situation where they lose say game one and he's already making all sorts of changes and, and, and, and just being impatient. And like we talked about resilience, just kind of go out the next night, night, let's just win the next game. And, and, maybe it's not because our lines were all screwed up. We just lost the game. Now we can come in and just try to win game two.
And I just hope that he doesn't get too antsy knowing that the pressure is probably on him. You know? Yeah. I mean, that certainly is a, is a consideration and something that maybe should worry Bruins fans because they also have a bunch of guys here, you know, that, people want to play, you know, you have your water spoons and your peaks and you know, what's going to happen with Grizzly.
Like what's going to happen with low ride, like who's going to actually be in the lineup originally to start with. And then if they do lose a game, does he make quick decisions to take one of those guys out? Does JVR come out? I was like, oh, come out when Maroon goes in. Like, how is all that going to work out? Is it going to be matchup based? Is it going to be merit based? Like who should be in there should be should be in because he can win face offs.
There's a bunch of different things there in the bottom six and maybe the bottom pair defense. That will be interesting to see how he handles that once the playoffs start. Does he have a quick trigger if somebody makes a mistake that they shouldn't have made? Or does he stick with them and let them kind of play through it and grow? So, you know, there's definitely some things there that he's going to have to manage and manage well if the Bruins are to advance. Yeah, no question.
So it'll be interesting to see how he does and what the matchup is to begin with. Like I've said before, if they go in against Washington, that's a series they should have not much trouble with. I mean, they shouldn't. But if they go in against a team that's better than Washington, then... Then who knows? I mean, there's going to be some focus on Montgomery and what he does, and he may have to make some changes and so forth.
So I think the matchup's really important in this first round, extremely important as we go forward. Chirp three, and this was interesting. The two wildcard spots per conference, there was someone who tweeted out that there would be four wildcard teams that compete in an NBA-like play-in tournament. So two teams emerge from each conference's play-in tournament, which I like because if you can add a single elimination game, then I think that's good. I mean, it's great in hockey.
It's like a built-in game seven right off the bat. So I like this, actually. Yeah, I don't mind expanding the playoffs if you're going to do something like this, like a couple games that are essentially elimination games to determine the last two teams that make the playoffs. I mean, it would be a little bit of a disadvantage for those teams then having to play a seven-game series against the top teams you know, the top one or two seeds.
But I mean, those teams should get an advantage for finishing in that position. So I think it would add some intrigue. It would get some other teams, you know, some playoff experience. You know, the league gets to televise essentially in a couple of extra game sevens. And Friedman was mentioning if you want the cap to go up and and, you know, the league to grow, this is something that you probably have to entertain as I'm expanding the playoffs.
So I don't have a problem with it if they do something like this. But I don't want to see, you know, another seven game series. No. On top of that, because, you know, you're talking about an already ridiculously grueling. you know, two to three months of, of playoffs and you're adding another week to that. Uh, it's just, uh, much punishment.
I think by the, by the end of it and, and, you could be looking at more guys getting hurt or worn down and maybe the, the product on the ice suffers because of that, because guys are just too beat up and, and the skill and, and speed of the game is, is kind of diminished a little bit because of that. So a little tweak here and there, I think could be, could be something good. And, and, and I always love, you know, uh, elimination games. So I think I would be all for that.
Yeah, I mean, right now you look at like Islanders at Lightning and Red Wings at Capitals. One game elimination. Penguins are two points behind the Islanders. You might get the Penguins and Lightning in that situation. So, yeah, I think that would be fun. You know, just a couple of, I don't know what it is, a couple of days after the end of the season. Let's go. Let's play two elimination games. I like the idea a lot, to be honest.
Yeah. I hope they go to it, to be honest with you, because it gives another chance. Like you said, not another seven-game series, but it gives two more teams a chance to try to get one win to get in the thing. So I think that's pretty good. Chirp four, one Bruin who could really surprise a first-round opponent with his play. That's an interesting one.
I mean, there's a couple of... candidates I would say uh and and geeky would certainly be on my list I think um peak has played pretty well since he's been here and I don't think would surprise anybody I mean if if he's playing like he can play he's a he's a top forward in the league he's a 25 30 goal scorer um so I don't know if he would necessarily be a surprise I think geeky maybe would be Um, and, and peak has certainly played well. Will he get in?
I think he'll get in over Shattenkirk, but I mean, I guess you never know. Um, so I would say, I would say geeky and I would say maybe a guy like Freddie or a guy like, um, you know, uh, maybe Lindholm could surprise people cause he's had kind of an, uh, a mediocre season.
And if you can get back to the way he was playing at the beginning of last year, you know, that would be a huge lift to the Bruins and, and could surprise some people because he hasn't been that guy for a little bit of time now. Well, that's some excellent foreshadowing as we continue on here in the church. But yes, I would have said Brazzo, but he's hurt now. And it doesn't seem like he'll be back anytime soon. Yeah, it looked like a shoulder or a wrist or something like that.
And you look at a guy like Pat Maroon. I mean, Maroon has a playoff pedigree. Certainly. He's on winning teams all the time, it seems. He's just one of those guys that plays on a Stanley Cup run type team every single year, it seems. So he could be a guy, I guess, Beecher. Could be a guy in the fourth line that could do some things. He has game-breaking speed. He does. That could be a game-changing type of guy. He wins face-offs and such. You may see an added role for him.
In that regard, chirp five since Don Sweeney became general manager of the Bruins in 2015. They hold the best record of any team since then. Boston's 421, 191 and 81 ahead of Tampa Bay, Washington, the Golden Knights in Pittsburgh. I mean, it's a pretty good run. And seasons. Yeah, it's a pretty good run. I mean, it is. And they've had a lot of good players during that time. I mean, the Bruins have had a lot of good players during that time. And the culture's been good.
And they've had good goaltending. And that's a huge part of it. You know, you go from Tuka Rask to Swayman and Allmark. And, you know, you just... With the goaltending, it's hard to have... really bad dips where you, you know, your team sucks for a long period of time because, you know, if you have a good defensive structure and good goaltending, you're going to be in most games, whether you win them two to one or four to three, I mean, you're going to be in most games.
So I think, you know, that's probably a big part of it is, uh, is the goaltending and defensive structure. And how about this? The, the best players, uh, have been fairly injury-free. They've played pretty much full seasons, too. So you're not losing guys for extended periods of time. I mean, Pasternak played 82. You know, Coyle played 82. I mean, guys have played, you know, Bergeron would play, you know, many, many games.
So their best players play pretty much full seasons, which is another key. Well, probably playing through injury, especially in Bergeron's case, showing tremendous toughness and leadership to be able to play through some of the stuff he played through. It certainly is all good. Yeah. Chirp six. Here's your whoa.
Nelly Bruins sign, Minnesota captain Jackson Nelson, a big center, six foot four, 220 pounds, 24 years old, played five seasons at Minnesota, 11 goals in his last eight games, a late blooming offensive player. Uh, you know, the compete level, was it always there? That type of thing. Didn't put a lot of great offensive numbers up until the last season, really.
Um, and then what happens, what happened to graph and Quillen Quillen goes and signs with Toronto of all teams and graph now up in the air and people, people I've seen talk about him, say maybe the Rangers could be there. and that the Bruins haven't been in it at all, really. So it looks like Nelson is the guy that they land on as their third college free agent. Yeah, I don't mind the siding because he's a big guy. He's a center, and he can score goals.
So some size down the middle is never a bad thing. I don't know how he is on face-offs. I can honestly say I've seen him play maybe twice, maybe. Right. So I don't really have a very good scouting report on the guy, but I hope, I hope he works out. I hope he works out. Cause you know, as we've touched on many, many times on here without, with the lack of draft capital that the Bruins have and lack of draft picks, they really need to hit on some of these undrafted free agent guys.
So hopefully Mr. Nelson here can turn into something for the bees and, and you know, he's a part of their future going forward. Yeah. Here's the thing that they like about him, I'm sure. Same as John Farinacci with Harvard, is that he was a captain and has leadership qualities. The Bruins have really focused on, in the last several years since Chara arrived, really, on the room and the leadership and character and things of that nature.
And by all accounts, Jackson is a, you know, as a leader for that team and a captain and, uh, he's mature at 24. I mean, he's the similarities to Farinacci when he came over from Harvard. So that's another, that's another part of it. I think too is, um, and he's, he's big, like you said, he's a center, which they need, you know, sort of desperately. Um, so I don't know. I mean, he had a good end of the season and again, ended up with 19 goals, I think this year.
Yeah. 19, 11 in his last eight, like really caught fire at the end of the year. But he was a guy, 24 years old, playing against 19, 20-year-olds too. So that's the other part of it too. But it'll be interesting to see how he does in Providence. I think we'll see how he does. He's going to do an ATO there and see if he gets some time, see how he does. I think it's still a long shot for him to be anything but a fill-in bottom player.
fourth line guy, bottom six kind of guy, just because his offensive production has not been great. When he was in high school, I look back, he had like 260 points in high school or something. Yeah, I mean, I think he has a lot of skill and maybe it's just... you know, it's, he's either a late bloomer or like you said, the commitment hasn't been there.
So, you know, we'll see maybe as he's becoming a professional now, he's kind of, and he's, you know, a little older than the normal kids coming out of the draft and so forth that he's figured it out. And if he has, that's great. And the Bruins have got to steal, but if he hasn't, you know, he'll be a, you know, a triple a guy or a ECHL guy going forward. If he, if he, you know, doesn't put in the work and, and consistently play with the effort that the Bruins demand from their guys.
And here's a quick little tidbit. Golfers were 8-1 when he scored a goal. How's that? So there you go. When he scores, his hockey club is pretty much dominant. Unbeatable. Except for one time. They have. Chirp 7, Hampus Lindholm and Charlie McEvoy were paired together to start the Nashville game. Does this solve any issues on the defense if those two are your top pair? And I believe they had 27 and 26 minutes respectively.
Yeah, I mean, that's kind of like putting Shire and Seidenberg together back in the day, right? Right, yeah. I don't know. So people have asked about the Lindholm-Carlo pair and if there was anything they could do because both of them were soft. So is this the Bruins' way of kind of trying to fix that? Split them up so that Lindholm is with the McAvoy now and Carlo is with... I don't know whomever, I don't know who he always paired with low rise.
So that probably won't happen in the playoffs, but yeah, it'll be interesting to see. I'm not sure if this is really the solution because I just, I've always felt like their chemistry between McAvoy and Lindholm has always been just slightly off. Yeah. So I'm not sure if that's the answer and, and maybe it's just cause I haven't played together a bunch. Um, McAvoy seems to be better with Grizzly for some reason, uh, probably cause they play together a bunch going back to BU.
Um, but, uh, I'm not sure if this is the answer. I, I think it could be, but, and now's the time to try it out. But, uh, yeah, chemistry to me still seems like it needs to develop a little bit more before I'm going to be satisfied that this is your, you know, shutdown pair going forward. Now, are you just like, let's just play Carlo Loray? Let's just play Loray and let's just see what happens? Or do you have to put in Gryzlik again? Or do you go Shattenkirk?
Do you go like Wotherspoon there and Shattenkirk and peak? Like what happens there? I see I, to me, Watherspoon is in, and I think, I think Grizzly is going to be in. I do. Right. I think it's going to be, you know, Are you going to go Grizzly, Carlo? No, I think because their chemistry is worse than Carlo. So I think you got to go McAvoy and Grizzly and Lindholm, Carlo. I would go Watherspoon and peak personally. That's, that's what I would do. I would do that.
Um, but, but I would almost bite the bullet and go and go low Ryan Carlo. I don't want to see grizzly in there and I don't want to see him in the top pair. Like that's just unbelievable. Yeah. I mean, to me, I would, I would almost go low ride McAvoy and leave Lindholm and Carlo. Right. As, as they are, as the shutdown supposed shutdown pair, even though it really hasn't been that way of late.
And you hope Lindholm kind of finds his game and, Um, but yeah, I mean, there's, there's some issues there with that. I mean, I wouldn't mind seeing Wotherspoon move up and maybe one of those other guys moved down. Like I would, I would try out Wotherspoon and McAvoy, honestly. Right. And put Grizzly at the peak. Right. But, uh, I don't think they will, but that's probably what I would do. I would rather see Wotherspoon play 20 a night than Grizzly.
Sure. Especially in playoffs where he gets kind of worn down a little easier. Yeah. that's why I would start, start with low Ryan. If he shits his pants, then go back to grizzly. And at least you tried it. You know what I mean? I just, I just see let's, let's go with as long with low rise as we can. And if he doesn't do well, fine. But if he does well and he starts to gain confidence and he's contributing and he's playing okay and not killing you, then maybe you have something there.
Maybe he has his first real postseason experience and then it's just no looking back. Yeah, I'm with you. I wouldn't, I wouldn't mind that. I just, I just don't think they will that. And that's what I was talking about with Monty kind of, you know, how's that all going to play out with his decision-making as far as who gets into the lineup, you know, is it going to be matchup based?
Like if they play Florida, uh, I don't think you can put grizzly in the lineup because he's just going to, he's going to be meant to the boards or he's going to be, you know, afraid going into the corners. Like you just can't have that against a team like that. You have to have a guy going back there. That's willing to take a hit to get the puck out of the zone. And Grizzlick isn't.
You watch him go back in the corners against Florida, and he's ole-ing guys coming in to smash them and basically giving up the puck. You can't have that in playoffs. You can't do it. You can't. Take the hit to make the play. Yeah. How much do you think Bonte is the final say in the lineup? I think he has a final say. You think he does? I think he does. I think he does. I don't... I think... I think once they get down, I don't know if he does. What I'm saying is to start with, he does.
And then if they get down like 2-0 or 2-1, then Neely's banging on the door saying, why is Grizzlick in the lineup? Or Neely's telling Sweeney, hey, go tell Monty, why is Grizzlick in the lineup? Or why is Lil' Ry in the lineup when he's turning it over? So I think he does initially have. But, you know, I'm sure they would say it's a collaborative fucking thing because the analytics nerds probably get a say. And, you know, the coach gets a say and goalie Bob gets a say on the goalies.
And I think they would probably say the whole thing is collaborative. Like Sweeney gets a say and everybody gets a say. But at the end of the day, somebody has got to determine who goes out on the ice. So I would say Monty does get to say until he doesn't. There you go. And you can probably bet on it on DraftKings Sportsbook, Boston's hometown sportsbook. It's live right here in Massachusetts. Bet local on all your favorite sports from the comfort of your own home with DraftKings.
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This will teach those filthy bastards who's lovable. Lindholm hasn't been a beauty for a while, and he had a fight recently. He scored his second goal of the season recently, and he's played heavy minutes and back with McAvoy against against the Nashville and seems to be finding his game a little bit. His offensive numbers are way down this year at 23 points or so, whatever it is.
But he is playing better as of late, playing a little bit more conviction, and hopefully that translates into the playoffs. One can only hope. He's such a big part of it. He has to be Seidenberg. He has to be playing at that kind of level. He won't play the same way as Seidenberg, but I'm just saying he has to be as good as Seidenberg was to really help this defensive core. Yeah, we can't have him be like a two. We need him to be a one B. We need him to be like a minutes-eating stud back there.
Like... 1A, 1B with him and McAvoy. If he can get back to Norris Lindholm as he was at the beginning of last year, that would really go a long way to them being a really tough out come the playoffs.
Because if that pair can shut down and he can provide some offense from that second pair, which they really haven't gotten much of, uh this season at all it would go a long way uh towards helping the team win games sure and our bender this week is our producer mr connor green I'm a bender do you want to do you want to speak up for yourself here at all or are we just going to bury you with your microphone and computer issues yeah I'll just take it on the chin this time Connor's having microphone
and computer problems, delayed the start of the podcast, just really creating a horrible work environment for all of us. And just creating all kinds of problems that are completely unnecessary. This is really all in jest. Here's the good news. Only one way to go, and that is out there. That's true, Connor. You're going to take this on the chin, but you're going to learn from it. Yeah. And, uh, and you're going to be a better producer going forward.
So you appreciate all your work and, uh, but you know, you gotta, you gotta take this one to the team. You can't wait for the growth. The growth is going to be special for sure. Um, but yes, we appreciate all that Connor does a centennial season spotlight. How about this one? Don Sweeney, Don Sweeney, the player. Okay. Wait, what?
Yeah. the player who's like top 10 all time and games played yes he is for your boston bruins played over a thousand games with the bruins um you know look it was obviously solid play it played you know over a thousand games it was on some cup cup uh cup runs a couple of cup runs in 88 90. um you know was it was a solid player undersized Yeah. Do you think that's why he has a soft spot for Grizzly? Absolutely. I mean, absolutely. That's why he went on that run of like just undersized defenseman.
Grizzly probably grabbed him by the back of the neck. All those guys. Fucking five, seven guys. Right. Give me some size. Yeah. Um, but yeah, Sweeney was a, Sweeney was a pretty good player for them and he's been a good executive for them. I mean, he has. Yeah. And he was a tougher, he was a tougher guy. He was, uh, even though he's undersized, he, you know, he would stick his nose in there and, and battle you.
And, and, uh, he did, he played a lot of games for the Bruins and was a pretty good player for them for a long time. He was, you know, cerebral from habit, you know, absolutely. Yeah. Providence Bruins, beauty of the week. 34-year-old Jason Megna. He's had a terrific week. Four goals and seven assists in the last 10 games. He's been terrific as the Providence Bruins are in second place in the Atlantic and headed to a playoff run here.
He signed as an undrafted free agent with the Penguins in 2012, so he's been around a while. 62 games played he has. 48 points this year, 17 goals and 31 assists. And it's been a good veteran presence for the Providence Bruins. Yeah. You know, he has been, that's exactly what I was going to say is he's been a good veteran presence for them and, and probably a good locker room guy. He's been around, has a lot of experience.
So, you know, hopefully he can help that team do a little damage in the Calder Cup playoffs. And, you know, maybe he gets an opportunity to go somewhere and crack a lineup at the NHL level. So good for him for having a good year. And hopefully him and the Providence Bruins can do something good in the playoffs down there. Yeah, it was a good little add-on for them in the offseason to pick him up as some guys left the organization and they filled in with Magna, and he's done pretty well.
And then prospect spotlight, how about this? Reed Dick, the... the goaltender for the Swift Current Broncos of the WHL. They lead their first-round series three games to none, and Reed has been terrific in that series, and he has been the star on that team. He had 62 out of 65 saves in these three games and one shutout, and he continues to really progress as a guy who was a raw talent. and is now really becoming a legitimate goalie prospect for them.
I think that's great news, especially with some of the, you know, goaltending issues that could be creeping up here for the Bruins. So, as we've always said, you know, nothing wrong with having a bunch of good goalies in your system. You know, there's no bad things there. So it's good to see him having a really good season and a good playoffs and hopefully he can continue that on.
And then, you know, he turns pro here coming up soon and can do some damage with the Providence Bruins and hopefully eventually the Bruins Bruins. You know, the goalie, Bob, we talk about him a lot, but Mike Dunham works for them too, works for the goalies too. And they have a really good system there. The Bruins do when it comes to goalie development. And like you said, you know, with, with Swayman's contract and with Allmark maybe being traded and.
with Kaiser probably moving on and Bussy's still in the air. I mean, you have some, there's going to be some movement there. You have a lot of depth, but that depth could kind of thin out quickly. So you had Ryan Bishel, you brought him in from Notre Dame, but you know, it's, it's good to have someone like Reed Dick, who was a six round pick. I mean, a low round pick, they kind of took a stab at and he's done nothing but improve each year. So good for him and good for the Bruins a week ahead.
Tomorrow night on April the 4th, it'll be at Carolina. And then a big one on April the 6th versus Florida. And then April the 9th versus Carolina. The Bruins are four points ahead of Florida, but they do play... Florida plays Ottawa, I believe, next, which should be a win for them. The Bruins play Carolina. So that could be back to a two-point advantage with Florida coming up. So that could be the game that determines... Who wins the division, really?
Yeah, I think first place in the Atlantic could very well be on the line in that game. So, you know, a couple of big games coming up here for the Bruins. If they could get past Carolina, they can kind of hold that cushion, hold that lead before they face Florida. But, you know, some tough games here. I don't know, Carolina, Florida, and then Carolina at home is certainly, you know, no easy wins there. So the Bruins will have their week work cut out for them this week. they certainly will.
And we had a question this week on X as we sent out a little, little, uh, what do you call that? A post now, or what do you call it? You don't call it tweet anymore, right? I don't know. An X out. I don't know. I'll call it a tweet. Cause of the whole thing. Right. Um, all right. So from Bruins fan 71, uh, Is this the bottom six rotation? And what he has is he has Maroon, Boquist, Brazo, which it won't be Brazo anymore. He has Beecher, Geeky, Frederick, which I think will be the third line.
I think that's going to be the third line. And then Maroon, Boquist, and Brazo, which will probably turn into Lauco, I would assume, now that Brazo is out. I think that JVR will be in there. You think so? Yeah. I just think they'll go with... I think that it's like the coaches rely on the guys with experience. I think... Lauco will probably be the one sitting like he always is. So you're going to have JBR and Maroon on the same line.
I think, no, I think it's going to be, I think it's going to be, he'll be on the third line. So I think it's going to be JBR, geeky Frederick. And I think it's going to be beach air, bull quest and Maroon on the fourth line. See, I really liked, I really liked the idea of beach or geeky Frederick. I really, I really liked that idea. I do too. I'm not opposed to it. Um, But I do think it will be Boquist, Beecher, and Maroon on the fourth line. Okay, so Boquist, Beecher, Maroon.
Beecher with speed. Boquist has been okay. Boquist has speed, and then Maroon gives you the physicality. In front of the net. I just don't think they'll sit JBR. He hasn't done anything for the longest time, but I can't see them... sitting him for, you know, especially, you know, he, is he going to be like net front and power play too, or is that going to be Maroon now? Maybe. So it'll be interesting to see. Um, but like, it's not going to be Laoco. And what does Laoco really offer you?
Um, I think JVR has experience and, you know, he's been in playoffs. Um, you know, obviously scored goals, scored a bunch of goals in his career. So I feel like he's probably the better option. than Lauco is at this time. Yeah. I mean, I'm not a local guy. I mean, I think Lauco is just kind of a guy that skates around. It's guys like they've had Carson Coleman and guys that, uh, Oscar Steen.
And, you know, they've had these types of guys over and over again, year after year, that just kind of take up space. And Lauco is one of those guys with me. Um, that's why I liked Brazil in there. He has size at least.
I mean, give me something that you offer, uh, beyond average guy if brazzo was healthy I would sit jbr and I would I would yeah and I would go with your your uh your lineup but I might put brazzo on the third line um just because I don't want brazzo maroon on the same line because that's two guys that can't skate on the same line so I'm not doing that I'll do it with one guy, but I won't do it with two guys.
So, you know, I would probably put Beecher, Brazzo and Boquist back together and then have a maroon skate with Geeky and Frederick. Yeah. And that's always healthy, but I don't, I don't think he's going to be for, for a bit. Yeah. Marty said today that was probably he's week to week, right? Week to week essentially. And, uh, it didn't sound great. Um, so hopefully, hopefully he is, but I don't think so. And that's a tough break for Brazzo. Cause he was right there.
Yeah. He was right there to get playoff time. He really was. And that was too bad. But if you want to reach out to us and we'll answer your questions, just go to at BruinsBenders on X and reach out to us. And also subscribe on YouTube on the Inside the Rink YouTube page. And InsideTheRink.com is your place to go and get some BruinsBenders merchandise there on our page. And we have some shirts and hoodies and hugs and all sorts of stuff. And we appreciate you listening. We'll see you next time.
Go Bruins. Thanks a lot. Bye-bye.