Every NHL team made changes over the summer. Some more than others. With that, we take a look at three teams who changed the most this summer – for better or worse.
Boston Bruins
The Boston Bruins underwent significant turnover, both in the front office and on the ice, following a disappointing 2014-15 where the club missed the playoffs. General manager Peter Chiarelli was replaced with Don Sweeney, while Dougie Hamitlon, Milan Lucic and Reilly Smith were all traded away.
Sweeney’s biggest task was attempting to rebuild a weak farm system, while trying to keep his team competitive. His efforts got off to a rough start, as trading young star Dougie Hamilton didn’t yield the enormous return it should have. Despite that, Sweeney ended up with three consecutive first-round picks in the 2015 draft and went off the board to draft Saint John Seadogs defenseman Jakub Zboril, Swift Current Broncos forward Jake DeBrusk and Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds forward Zachary Senyshyn.
On his current roster, Sweeney did a nice job adding supplemental scoring at a relatively cheap price. He dumped Marc Savard’s contract in a trade which saw Smith go to Florida for Jimmy Hayes. He immediately signed Hayes to a three-year deal worth $6.9 million. Matt Beleskey, one of the most coveted free agents this offseason, signed a five-year $19.8 million deal with the Bruins, which was way less money than expected. Beleskey is a grinder who should be counted on for 15-20 goals, with any more than that being considered a bonus. Not every move was impressive, as Sweeney made one of the biggest boneheaded moves of the offseason, trading a third-round pick for agitator Zac Rinaldo. Players like Rinaldo could have been had on the free agent market on a PTO.
The Bruins youngsters have a chance at cracking this year’s roster. There are some open roster spots, specifically in the bottom-six of the forward group that should be decided at training camp. Malcolm Subban will also get a chance to start between 15-20 games behind Tuukka Rask.
It’s hard to peg this club and where exactly they’ll fall in the standings. The team still has tons of talent, and is too good to be mediocre. 2015-16 will decide if the Bruins can continue to contend, or a rebuild looms.
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