Torey Krug has been a staple for the Boston Bruins since his debut. Unfortunately, the Bruins need to improve their defense, and he’s the most likely candidate to be moved.
With the NHL draft a week from Friday, the Boston Bruins are in a pretty good place. Their group of young players showed great promise. Their prospect pool is – by a measure of sheer quantity – still one of the top in the NHL. They got to roll out the best line in hockey in Patrice Bergeron, David Pastrnak, and Brad Marchand. During their 18-game point streak this winter, there was talk that this team was over-performing – reaching their potential earlier than anyone anticipated. And, as you know, it all came crashing down in the Semifinals against the Tampa Bay Lightning.
While the five-game series loss did serve as a gut-punch, the Bruins’ playoff exit exposed their weaknesses, particularly on the blue line. Their weaknesses need to be addressed this offseason if they want to compete for a Stanley Cup within this window.
The little guys
Looking at the defense corps as it stands now, two themes emerge: undersized left-handers, and bottom pairing right-handers. This piece stands to discuss the small men – Torey Krug and Matt Grzelcyk.
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Krug is coming off a season that saw him log 20:24 average time on ice (TOI,) and accrued 59 points – 14 goals and 45 assists – landing in a tie for eighth in points among defensemen. Of those 59 points, 24 came on the power play, averaging 3:26 TOI a game on the man-advantage. After all, his elite offensive abilities, paired with his standing as the quarterback of the powerplay are what earned him his four-year, $21 million extension.
Grzelcyk, however, had a fine rookie year. He accrued 15 points in 61 games, and logged time on the second power play unit. Unlike his colleague Krug, he showed a knack for playing in his own zone and Head Coach Bruce Cassidy awarded him with 16:44 average TOI – even after the team acquired Nick Holden from the Rangers. The Charlestown native is entering Restricted Free Agency and qualifies for arbitration. Regardless of the outcome of Grzelcyk’s contract negotiations, he will stand to make far less money than Krug’s $5.25M cap hit.
Basically the same player
With both defensemen, the Black and Gold are allowing a redundancy on their blue line. I’ve been knocked in the past for saying Kevan Miller and Adam McQuaid are “pretty much the same player,” and I’m ready to be knocked again. Krug and Grzelcyk serve very similar purposes. I’ll go a step further. If Cassidy trusts Grzelcyk to log the minutes he logged last season, and trusts him to play a game similar to his counterpart, it’s time to cut the cord from Krug.
This is not to say Krug’s game has no value or merit with the Bruins. During the 2013 Stanley Cup run, Krug’s emergence was the first sign of a Bruins team that seemed to be changing their philosophy. Opening up their game, allowing defensemen to serve a purpose elsewhere but their own end. But he was only logging third-pair minutes then. Now the Bruins rely on Krug to serve as a major player in their defensive game plan. And as the aforementioned series loss proved, the team’s needs and his skill set are not in step with one another.
Krug will be hard to replace
Now, it would irresponsible to claim that replacing Krug’s offensive game would be easy. It would be even more irresponsible to claim that one player alone could replace Krug’s offensive output. No, the Krug-sized hole in the Bruins roster would have to be replaced by a coalition of defenseman, led by Charlie McAvoy and Grzelcyk. McAvoy’s serious offensive upside should earn him consistent time with the first powerplay unit in the post-Krug era, eating up the 3:26 in powerplay TOI that Krug leaves behind. McAvoy exhibited offensive ability at a young age that the Bruins have not seen since Krug in 2013. They eased him into his role in his rookie season. Now, it’s time for the Boston Bruins to let McAvoy reach his full dual-threat potential.
What could the B’s get in return?
There has been plenty of speculation when it comes to a Krug landing spot. The Carolina Hurricanes, who will be partaking in a fire sale for the ages this offseason, have two very intriguing defensemen in Noah Hanifin and Jaccob Slavin. They both fill the Boston Bruins needs in a left-shot, two-way defenseman. The asking price for fellow ‘Cane Jeff Skinner is “a first round pick and a prospect,” according to TSN’s Pierre LeBrun.
Due to his pedigree, and contract situation, the cost for Hanifin should be considerably higher than Skinner. Slavin’s value, however, is considerably lower. He would have the same cap hit as Krug, but with seven more years on the deal.
The Edmonton Oilers have Oscar Klefbom on their roster – yet another candidate who fills the need. Klefbom has a little more offensive upside to his game than the other two, but he’s an Oiler. And while he may not have the job for much longer, Peter Chiarelli is still their GM. This could make prying Klefbom out of Edmonton more difficult. Considering the capital the Bruins would have to part with, Slavin makes the most sense of the three.
These teams both fell in the bottom ten in Power Play percentage and could use a player like Krug. However, his contract has a No-Trade clause, giving him the right to deny a trade to eight teams. Considering the teams’ positioning moving forward, it wouldn’t be shocking to see Krug deny a trade to either team. If that’s the case, the Bruins have to maximize Krug’s value elsewhere, extracting picks and prospects to complete the trade. It’s an extra step, but whatever works.
Next: The Boston Bruins need to keep the 1st line together
Torey Krug served a great purpose with the Boston Bruins in his time here. But that time is over. The best thing they can do to honor his memory is to trade him for the best package.