Much of the early season buzz around the Bruins has been about Matt Poitras, and rightly so. Poitras very well could be the top six centerman the B’s have been looking to develop for over a decade now.
But the emergence of fellow rookie John Beecher has been a welcome and timely development as well. Beecher, centering the fourth line between Milan Lucic and Jakub Lauko that was the one unit that coach Jim Montgomery left alone in Monday’s practice, has helped mitigate the underrated loss of Tomas Nosek in the early going of the season.
Seeing just 12.5% of offensive zone starts, Beecher so far has shown himself to be a reliable defensive-minded pivot while holding his own in the faceoff dot (12 up, 10 down).
Plenty more challenges lay ahead, but so far so good.
“I’m definitely getting a little more comfortable out there and settling in nicely. The guys have made it a good transition for us. They’ve helped out a lot,” said Beecher, the 30th overall pick in the 2019 draft, after Monday’s practice.
“I think going into games, my only mindset is keeping things simple for right now. We’re only two games in and I’m still trying to gain a little confidence out there and really just trying to open the ice up, just keeping it simple, playing north-south, playing that hard, fast game. I think it’s gone well so far and I’ve had some positive feedback from the coaching staff and the guys in the locker room. Obviously that’s really encouraging to see and I just have to keep my foot down,” he said.
In an NHL that has never been faster, Beecher’s speed has been noticeable. Combined with his 6-foot-3 frame and long reach, he has shown to be an effective penalty killer. That skill was evident in the B’s win over the Nashville Predators last Saturday when they paraded to the penalty box in the first and second periods. Beecher saw 4:36 of ice time on the PK, which would eventually help to shift momentum in the game to the Bruins.
“Obviously, we’re playing in the best league in the world right now and everybody out there can skate, so that’s definitely encouraging to see that I can still use that as a big asset,” said Beecher. “Honestly, I could probably even use it a bit more. So just still trying to fine-tune some things out in the games and get a little more comfortable. I’m sure this nice long road trip will help, just getting a couple more games under my belt and hitting the ground running.”
Playing with Lucic, who has returned to Boston as something of a Bruin icon, has helped Beecher as well as second-year NHLer Lauko.
“He does all the little things right. He’s always in the right spots. You can tell he’s played over 1,100 games so he’s an unreal vet to have. It’s kind of surreal playing on a line with him. It’s been fun for the first two games and hopefully we can keep it going,” said Beecher of Lucic.
“He sees the ice so well and he makes so many good reads. It’s good to see. We’re going to make mistakes out there but having a guy like that who can settle things down is nice.”
Shuffling lines
While the elevation of Poitras to play with Brad Marchand was the most interesting of the line changes, the reunion of Charlie Coyle with Trent Frederic was noteworthy as well. They were a successful tandem last year with Taylor Hall riding left wing, a role that for now will be played by James van Riemsdyk. Montgomery believes it can be a good two-way line.
“They’re both really good 5-on-5, below the tops players. They’re both good defensively as well. If I want to I can match them up against some other teams’ best offensive line,” said Montgomery of Coyle and Frederic. “But most importantly is the O-zone time they play well together and I think a guy like van Riemsdyk helps them connect the dots, because he likes to own the net front, Charlie likes to possess and Freddy really does a good job of getting open as the (the third forward in the zone) and shooting it.”
Montgomery believes Frederic is coming into his own as a player.
“I’ve just noticed that from this point last year to this year, he’s a way more assertive hockey player. I think he’s just a lot more confident hockey player and he’s showing how he’s taking the puck and skating with it more this year and looking to create offense more on his own,” said Montgomery.
Loose pucks
Montgomery believes, with so much turnover and some younger players in the lineup, it has been good to have a fairly light schedule early on.
“We need more teaching than we did last year, just to be able to play fast,” said Montgomery. “I really liked how our 5-on-5 game went from Game 1 to Game 2. We played a lot faster in all three zones. So that was encouraging, but we’ve still got a long way to go. We’re a work-in-progress. And when you’re a work-in-progress as a team, as far as closing out games and extending leads and things that really matter to results, you’ve got to do a little more teaching.”….
The B’s switched out the energizing and sometimes impetuous play of Connor Clifton for the more veteran, cerebral approach of Kevin Shattenkirk on the third defense pairing with Derek Forbort. Time will tell which combo will be more effective, but Montgomery has liked what the well-traveled 34-year-old Shattenkirk, who won a Stanley Cup with Tampa Bay in 2020, has brought to the entire defense group.
“I really like his poise and his intelligence,” said Montgomery. “He has a really good calming influence on our D corps within the game, something we felt we needed back there, just because he’s been through a lot in his career. And I think his understanding of the game and momentum within the game will help, kind of like (Nick) Foligno and (Lucic) have done here. Looch has done that really well for the forwards this year.”…
Delaware North announced the appointment of Glen Thornborough to the role of President of TD Garden and COO of the Bruins. He will be responsible for “shaping the organization’s brand strategy, driving revenue growth, fan engagement, community relations and overall success in all non-hockey aspects of the organization,” according to a team release.
Thornborough succeeds Amy Latimer, who was recently promoted to Executive VP and COO of Delaware North.
