While the Boston Bruins were busy on Day 1 of the NHL free agency, there were also several former players who found new homes on Monday.
Matt Grzelcyk, Jake DeBrusk, Danton Heinen, Derek Forbort and Pat Maroon were among the players who were with the Bruins last year who signed with a different team. Tyler Bertuzzi and Craig Smith, who were in Boston two years ago, both signed with the Chicago Blackhawks.
Here’s how experts graded some of the moves.
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Tyler Bertuzzi:
In the short term, this move adds more scoring help. In the long term, this is the sort of move that could help the Blackhawks with the next phase of their evolution. They used free agency last year to add veterans such as Taylor Hall and Nick Foligno to mentor a young roster. This offseason saw them sign two players who could have strengthened several rosters, including teams trying to win the Stanley Cup. That’s not to say the Blackhawks are indeed going to challenge for a playoff spot. But they look much stronger than a team that finished with a bottom-three record.
It’s the same cap hit Bertuzzi received on a one-year contract last season with the Toronto Maple Leafs. This deal provides the 29-year-old winger with stability for the future and an opportunity to play a leadership role with a rebuilding club. Chicago has plenty of salary-cap space and can easily afford Bertuzzi’s new deal
Bertuzzi saw playoff action with the Leafs and Boston Bruins over the past two seasons. He’s heading to a situation in Chicago that is familiar to him as he spent his early NHL seasons with the rebuilding Detroit Red Wings. He’ll now be expected to use his experience to take some of the burden off their promising youngsters like Bedard.
Contract grade: A-
Fit grade: A
Jake DeBrusk
On the surface, signing DeBrusk provides the Canucks with options. They’ve added a 20-goal-scoring winger who could potentially score more in addition to the fact that he could be another body they use on the penalty kill. Even though the Canucks lost Lindholm, the fact they signed a versatile two-way player such as DeBrusk reinforces the notion that they’re serious about trying to challenge in the Western Conference for another year — and for the long haul.
DeBrusk, 27, was among the youngest of this summer’s notable unrestricted free agents. A versatile forward who can play on either wing, he reached the 40-point plateau five times in his seven seasons with the Bruins.
DeBrusk’s cap hit is reasonable and the term isn’t bad as he’s now in his playing prime. It remains to be seen if the change of scenery will bring out more consistency in his game, especially if he ends up skating with playmaking wizard Elias Pettersson.
Contract grade: B-
Fit grade: A
If there was any doubt that the Canucks are entering their all-in, Cup-or-nothing phase, that’s gone out the window. They needed win-now wingers, and they just reeled in two of them.
Much of his time in Boston was marked by a lack of security — and he now has that in spades. Seven years is a long time. On the team side, that might cause some consternation, which is understandable; he’s not the most consistent player you’ll ever see. It’s not one-sided, though. Tacking on an extra year or two makes the hit more manageable for the Canucks, and that counts for plenty. The other option, especially after Jake Guentzel signed elsewhere, was failing to meaningfully improve the roster’s single biggest weakness. This team just put up 109 points. That shouldn’t be any sort of option at all.
Matt Grzelcyk:
As the rest of the Metropolitan division took big steps toward being playoff teams, Pittsburgh could only acquire 32-year-old center Kevin Hayes, 27-year-old winger Anthony Beauvillier and depth defenseman Matt Grzelyck. Yikes.
Danton Heinen
Contract: B+
Fit: A
He’s scored 0.94 goals/60 over the last season, which is more than players like Conor Garland and Teuvo Teravainen, and he’s done that playing mainly on the bottom six. He’s fast and kills penalties, too. Just a solid player who seems destined to score a big playoff goal or two, and someone who can move up and down the lineup. He also probably allows Pius Suter to play center, which improves Vancouver’s depth at another position.
