Boston Bruins are smart for keeping Jake DeBrusk
The Boston Bruins keep rolling along into the New Year. They are 29-4-4 and continue to find ways to win hockey game after hockey game.
That streak continued Monday in the Winter Classic, as the Black and Gold defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins 2-1. Two third period goals helped the Bruins reign in the New Year in style. Those goals were scored by none other than Jake DeBrusk.
Jake Debrusk has come a long way since his trade request last season. He’s regularly contributing to this Bruins team and just seems overall happier on the ice. So I guess it’s safe to say that it was extremely smart of the Boston Bruins to keep Jake DeBrusk in the fold.
The Boston Bruins are better with Jake DeBrusk
It’s no secret that the Bruins are better with DeBrusk on the roster than elsewhere.
In 36 games this season with the Black and Gold, the 26 year old left winger has 16 goals and 14 assists. He also has a +/- of +15. Pretty good for being on a first line with Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand on a daily basis!
The beauty about having DeBrusk is that he can switch from first line to second line like nothing. One night, he can be skating along with the Bergeron-Marchand pairing. The next night, he can be down on the second line with Pavel Zacha and David Krejci. His flexibility is something that can’t go unnoticed.
Jake DeBrusk is a key to the Boston Bruins future
With the way things are going, it looks like Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci will retire after the 2022-2023 season.
In realizing that, Jake DeBrusk is a huge part of what the future will look like for these Bruins. With all of these pieces in place, the Bruins could be contenders for the next 5-7 years. DeBrusk, Marchand, David Pastrnak, Charlie McAvoy, Hampus Lindholm, and Trent Frederic at least give you a nucleus that is mostly young and talented enough to compete with the NHL’s best.
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DeBrusk could be in more of a permanent first line role when Bergeron retires, assuming the Bruins get a center or move Marchand/Pastrnak over to the center position. Not a bad position to be in heading toward the future!
The bottom line with Jake DeBrusk and the Boston Bruins
This is one of the few times that I will give Don Sweeney and Bruins ownership credit. They could’ve very easily gotten rid of DeBrusk when he asked for a trade last season. But they stuck with him and gave him a new head coach in Jim Montgomery, who he’s thrived under.
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So now instead of having one less piece of the puzzle, the Bruins have a player that can be a huge part of what they need in the future.
Obviously, we’re going to enjoy the ride of this season as the Bruins continue to pretty much dominate everyone else in their path. But after this season? There will be more questions than set answers.
But one thing is for sure. Jake DeBrusk was smart to stay in Boston and the Bruins organization was smart to keep him here.