RECAPPING Bruins’ Dev Camp/Free Agency | Poke the Bear

RECAPPING Bruins’ Dev Camp/Free Agency | Poke the Bear

poke the bear is powered by prize pick the exclusive daily fantasy partner of the clns media [Music] Network and welcome into poke the bear episode 245 presented by CS media and sponsored by our good friends over at prize picks and game time tickets my name is Connor Ryan once again we are joined by tyan of 985 the sports up Ty how was your fourth of July you have some glizzies some burgers uh it was kind of boring I’m not going to lie to we we are planning to see our friends tomorrow uh the 6th um which is you know it’s kind of like a everyone you know I’m 32 all my friends have kids now basically except for me um and so it’s harder to make plans I found and um there was really nothing going on familywise for me so um kind just hung out we hung out we we walked around Boston because we live here in town and um you know we got couple of quesadillas so not exactly traditional um Fourth of July Cuisine but a fun day in the city nevertheless how about yourself listen what’s more American than being able to go out there and have a a a wide range of different culinary options like no one’s hating Casas I don’t think so the what’s more American than that they have the freedom to walk walk amongst this rry and still gets a beautiful casilla can’t have that in like Italy yeah so I would argue I would argue we had the most fourth July with our freedoms and our decisions to get whatever the hell we wanted to eat this is going to go down a horrible path if we do the Tim Robinson sketch but uh no same here lowkey I think you get to a certain point where just being able to chill decompress and do kind of nothing we just threw a couple of burgers and hot dogs on the grill relaxed didn’t have like a whole bunch of people over there’s a there’s Bliss to that right look at how hectic things can be so uh lowkey for us uh both of us were over at uh Bruin’s development camp at the start of the Fourth of July what’s more American than going to Canada’s national sport and seeing some a Bruins Prospect skate up and down the ice at Warrior Ice Arena so second year in a row I think it’s our new tradition unfortunately I know the NHL just loves to compress every we have like weeks upon weeks uh Tai where where uh the season ends where it’s it’s us just talking about what could happen uh finding out what’s going to happen during the offseason and then all gets compressed into about days of absolute chaos so this whole podcast will be us trying to uh recap sort through all that happened about two months worth of news that happened in the span of four days but we’ll start with Dev Camp um obviously every year it it’s more of a you know just checking in seeing how players are as opposed to a real evaluation that stuff comes in you know uh the fall with training camp and team players going to their respective leagues and again the Bruins don’t necessarily have the most stacked uh Prospect pipeline so I mean having G lerno there obviously helped quite a bit but what kind of stood out to you in terms of like a player or two that um you kind of caught your eye over these four days uh I I would say the continued progression of some of their college uh prospects uh namely Riley Duran uh Oscar Yelich uh these guys are are you know you can see them coming along even Andre gaso um you’re starting to kind of see their maturation they’re getting bigger they’re getting stronger um you know even a guy who is jumping to college this this upcoming year you know Chris Pelosi like he looks a bit more filled out than he did a year ago right and and that’s part of the game for for these kids now it’s not just how do you look on the ice it’s it’s how does your frame look off the ice right like you got to get a Little Bit Stronger obviously as we all know when you’re going from the USHL to the college game or the college game to the Pro game like and so to see their commitment to that I think is important it’s impressive um and it’s an encouraging sign like you like you said like not a lot of high pick so the ones that you do make you gotta you got to make sure that you’re getting the right player but that Player is taking it seriously in terms of their progression and clearly the Bruins have found some guys who are taking the craft seriously yeah and I think you just look at the the roster right you have 35 players that took part in Dev Camp only four of them were under six feet and it’s all like these like forwards like ptra Cole Spicer Dan Loch melis and jelic who are like Loch melis and jelick are two guys who maybe have more middle six upside if all things pan out so you’ll take the a guy who’s 510 fin1 if they have that different kind of mentality but as you said like you look at all these forwards they have like gaso who 6’4 P 61 but he was kind of known as a high motor kind of player when they drafted him you kind of saw that play out Riley Duran who I mean the Bruins seem like he’s like third in the line behind uh LEL and merkulov in terms of NHL reps which again it’s encouraging that’s kind of how they mapped him out but fact they’re already talking about him you know maybe making a push this year when you already have kind of a log Jam of kind of fourth line players up in the roster right now um encouraging to see that from them but I just think you look at the Bru’s overall approach right like we’ve talked about this I think last week when the Bruins took laturno of like good on them for swinging for the fenes with a guy that has some risk right like he’s definitely a project I think we definitely saw that this week of you see the potential you see that he’s pretty pretty raw he’s going to need some time to fill out there but you can afford to take one of those kind of players who maybe have that Boomer bust potential when you look at their strategy of just um you know size on the blue line and forwards up front who have some size but have high Motors and can be effective on the for check you know inject energy that kind of those two traits right in terms of your Forge and your defense like you’re creating guys who have a pretty steady floor right like again are all these guys going to go to the NHL of course not but if you’re getting these guys in like the seventh round or the fifth round that become at the very least productive AHL players and fill out your roster there and one of them could make the jump or a guy could eventually be a a third pair physical player or a steady bottom six player you’ll take that when you look at just how Barren or how how few opportunities this team has had to really swing for the fences and add guys like they’ve made the most of finding identity craft and kind of crafting their farm system towards what they’re trying to draft yeah and you know obviously a guy like leten is the is the the outlier you know like that that a lot of these guys seem to have um trying to find a way to say it like they have safe ceilings right like it’s like okay this guy’s be a Dependable third liner fourth liner maybe can be like a Danton Heinen can move up to your second line in a pinch kind of deal not a lot of them have that this guy if if everything works is a Bonafide top six impact kind of Talent on your roster and so we talked about this you know last week is like you gota be patient with that kind of player um and that player is gonna go through different sort of okay I’m this kind of guy or I’m that kind of guy you know talking to him this week oneon-one everyone was talking about you know you’re Tage Thompson you’re Tage Thompson and he was kind of like you know he’s like to be honest I watch more Leon dry idle than I do Tage Thompson like that’s a guy that he looks at and says I want to be like him and you know the second overall pick from 2014 uh you know incredible player as we all know um it’d be great if he hits that probably not gonna hit that let’s be honest but you know like it’s when you it’s it’s funny that when we try to box somebody into you’re this guy that same guy goes no actually I’m more like this guy I like playing like him more than I like playing like Tage Thompson so I I think that’s kind of funny that’s kind of interesting to me um but yeah I mean you gotta produce some talents out of here and and that’s such a simplified way of looking at it but like look at the the the late era of Tampa Bay Lightning hockey right like that produced um Yanni gourd who was undrafted that produced Ross Colton who I believe was a fifth round pick I want to say like the late like the late era of those teams didn’t have picks either but they got guys that were valuable contributors in some fashion and we’re kind of entering that final window of that for now the BRS are going to start having picks again the next few years whether or not they keep them that’s anybody’s guess as we all know but in the now like some of these guys you’re talking about they got a hit and so Dev Camp is a nice check-in it doesn’t mean much it’s summer you know like things can happen as we all know um but I would say off the Jump when it comes to Dean Loro like we’re looking at a guy that clearly has some work in front of him but the overall framework is encouraging I would say yeah I agree I I think you look at it right it’s something where I think it was preached very early on you look at this guy who’s 18 could put on another you know 25 30 pounds when he’s all said and done um but again you like it I feel like there was some people who like mentioned like ah this guy’s getting knocked off the puck quite a bit this is a guy who’s you know skating is still not there it’s like he’s still a project and I I think it’s also like the skating not there like he had a few stumbles during like technical drills and stuff like that where I don’t think even 18yar olds are necessarily working on those kind of things I think his overall like his strides good he has good acceleration I think like especially like his shot but also like just like his he doesn’t seem like encumbered by his frame right there’s some of these guys where they’re kind of just you know they’re either hindered by just how big they are they still like don’t have like that touch with the puck he’s good at like you know handling pucks uh you know kind of working in tight quarters um he had a couple of really good plays on Thursday during three on threes where didn’t have a lot of space and just has that reach where he can kind of make something happen out of nothing so you look at like what he already has kind of dialed down for a player that size it’s encouraging it’s all about just taking those next steps but also like those next steps aren’t anything that is like a reach for what you’re expecting like this is a guy who again he’s probably G to take his lumps next year going from prep to Boston College uh a national championship contender in probably you know the best you know uh league in college hockey like that’s to be expected but you look at like what he needs to do it’s all about the things that every young player has to go through like putting on weight uh learning you know dealing with the higher Pace dealing with the added physicality it’s not like there’s he’s a project but I don’t think there’s anything in there that is asking way too much in terms of what he needs to do right like it’s not like this guy is 67 but man he needs to work on his skating or like man this guy can’t he handles a puck like a grenade like there not anything like that where you’re like all right this guy really needs to dial down these things it’s all just the natural progression but by saying that it also means like I don’t think he’s gonna be one and done at BC like give this guy who’s kind of a unicorn out there the time he needs to really kind of just find his footing I think yeah and I think this first year at BC is going to be telling um in terms of okay what’s he doing on day one of eagles you know Camp season whatever you want to call it and what’s he doing by their final game of the year you know if they’re in the Frozen Four like like is he still in the fourth line third line or is he in a top six role like like that might answer more questions than anything else is like how are they utilizing him you know his goal is for BC this freshman year and they’re going to give him an opportunity clearly if they’re bringing him in following the departure of Will Smith they’re looking at it like we think he can be an impact player sooner rather than later but you know is he playing special teams is he playing on the PK or the power play is he um playing playing more than 10 minutes a night you know is he a regular lineup fixture you know he said that his goal is to earn a lineup spot full-time and to be playing special teams so if he can do let’s say he has a full-time lineup spot that’s that’s box one but if he can play in the PK that’s box two if you can play on the power play that’s that’s box three if he can check multiple boxes this year then that’s a win for him and that increases the timeline a little bit so I’m with you that in the sense that I think he’s two to three years I don’t think he’s going to be a oneandone it’d be great if he if he were but yeah I If he if he is that that means that he was like a Hobie Baker you know type of talent in terms of production and and what BC did as a team overall so I think he’s gonna be back uh I I want to I’m gonna say three years I’m gonna say three um but I I just really think it’s about how do they utilize him this upcoming season yeah absolutely he’s definitely someone that again him being a BC also will be helpful in terms of just how many times the ruins and any of us will be able to watch him whether he’s playing you know be or any of any of these other hockey teams so his development I think will be great to watch and again I think you expect learning curves and bumps along the way and hell if it’s his freshman year and he’s got 20 goals in 35 games and all a sudden you that’s great news like I I’ll be the first to be like didn’t see this coming and that’s a great problem to have where all a sudden you have a guy that maybe he only is a year or two at BC and he’s ready to make a push there again I don’t think that’s going to be the expectation and I will be very surprised if that is a guy going from prep to that level that quickly um but he’s again he’s such a unique prospect that I don’t really know we’ll see we’ll see how that kind of plays out I also think it’s I also think it’s important to note too that like it’s very rare that a guy is a oneandone at BC oh yeah like it’s just rare like I I you know Ryan Leonard is staying for another year right unfortunately for being cutter cutter goate did two years right yeah yeah um is perau going back again he is going back yeah so you know the the guy who was one and done was Will Smith who was what sixth overall fifth overall something like that fourth yeah yeah like you got to be like a special special talent to to be able to do a one andone at BC and not to say that these guys like perau and Leonard couldn’t go if they wanted to but like just the overall ability to be a oneandone requires something really special and know if Leonard wasn’t a oneandone after scoring what 30 goals and 60 points or something like that he he was I think he was like the most Pro ready out of all those guys even more than Smith like I was shock went back so you know there’s an element there of like you gotta prove a lot right to to to be able to like truly be that kind of guy and and I don’t know I I think it’s unreasonable to expect uh either Loro like internally to expect that out of himself or for a program or a pro team to expect that out of him so I think two to three sounds right um and so we we’ll see how it all transpires but I think the BC program specifically I I I I do feel like that’s a multi-year build whereas some other schools like like be I feel like has more one andd you know like I think they import more talent that is just like this dude is pretty close damn ready yeah exactly they’re Kentucky yeah so uh yeah it’ be great to see how it all kind of pans out for lerno um before before we uh wrap up Dev Camp was there any uh player that you think like I think we’ve got these tiers right of we know ptra we know Lori we know merul love lysel I think Yelich is probably in that tier below that where he’s a guy that I think is really kind of separated himself a little bit Duran is there any other like maybe underrated Prospect who uh you you’re going to be keeping tabs on whether it’s again via you know people on Twitter sending something along I know we’re going to get a whole lot of highlights as we do every year from uh our dedicated Providence you know prospects Watchers who clip everything they’re you know the work they do in terms of sending stuff along is much appreciated is there any player down in Providence or guy who’s going to college that you’re excited to see uh this upcoming year yeah you know I touched on him a little bit earlier but uh Chris Pelosi is goingon to be making the jump from the USHL to Quinn aak this year uh I know he’s a freshman and and you know freshman deployment can always be kind of tricky in terms of uh how much ice time do you get but um a guy that people Rave about uh whether it’s teammates in the USHL uh you know Becket Hendrickson a guy who played with him and a fellow Bruins Prospect like they they say that he’s got something here so I I want to see how it translates and it it might be a hard year um to see how it does translate but but that’s a guy uh that I’d be watching um you know the top pick from their uh 23 class I do believe I I I believe was their first pick so um so that that’s a guy uh that that I’d be watching closely and and the other one is actually from um that same class which is uh Ryan Walsh um who I believe is going to college this year um but but had really good scoring numbers um in the USHL a year ago I’m forgetting the N the team he played for but I remember um looking at the numbers and be like wow that’s a more of a goal scoring threat than I thought so um those are two guys that I get my on this year again jump into the college game just just looked it up Ryan Walsh is going to Cornell uh this year so ever heard of it yeah it’s in the it’s called Colonel it’s the highest rank in the military um so he’s going there uh he was in Cedar Ruff Rapids uh the Cedar Rapids ref Riders this year uh 79 points in 61 games so clearly got a scorer touch uh so that’s a guy that I’m looking those are two guys I’m looking at how about you yeah I think one guy um who as I said earlier you’re going to get those tweets from Bruin’s network uh Robert chers all these people who are dedicated in terms of you know clipping all this stuff uh Jackson Edward a guy who a seventh round pick so great value even if he’s maybe just a AHL stalwart but uh Controlled Chaos I think is Jackson Edward they’re gonna get a bunch of zadorov now in terms of these guys that are just absolute Chaos on the ice and again like what his NHL ceiling is we’ll see um played for a great London Knights team uh run by the hunters who have a great track record as well uh if you’re a a guy who’s prone to laying out players and and causing Havoc having Dale Hunter as a coach is probably a pretty useful resource to have uh but he’s a guy that again I I think you look at the way he plays pretty Dynamic player had more of I think an offensive touch Than People expected um is prone to dummying players throwing them into into the end board stuff like that th least will be entertaining and he’s a guy that if develops over the next couple years in Providence he could be a guy that down the road could be a really useful 7D like maybe he’s a third pairing guy like a Kevin Miller who’s really physical really punishing kind of player it just he’s a guy that especially for a seventh round pick um it’s the way the edl is going where it’s so heavy on you know speed and skill now having guy with Edwards game and just that that violence that nastiness to his the game makes him kind of an outlier and a rare kind of asset to have so he’s a guy I’m pretty excited to see how he kind of plans out next year yeah and and I know we have to put the qualifiers on it because he is a seventh round pick and those guys you know they’re basically their lottery tickets I know but you know Matt Roy from the LA Kings now with the Washington Capitals was a seventh round pick uh a guy that we’ve talked about on this podcast before Jacob Middleton was a seventh round pick I believe McKenzie wear was the seventh round pick as well um so you can find these guys and you alluded to it you know that London nights program produces some extraordinary Pricks extraordinary Pricks they they produce guys that play with that nastiness that edge that Dale Hunter mean streak um just top my head here Matthew kachuck Max doy um oh God there’s another one who’s a real so who played there I’m um not not necessarily like super mean but like Bo Horvat you know they produce these two prickly guys yes yes they yeah exactly and so it’s not going to have to be taught to him you know like hey you got to be a mean mfer he’s he’s gonna know how to do that he’s already been that kind of guy in the OHL and so uh and I love what they’ve done in Providence this year in terms of um helping those guys out with some legit nastiness we’re going to talk more about free agents later but these were you know Billy Sweezy is a guy who plays with that edge um he’s going to be on the back end down Providence jeffel is a guy they brought in who was in the NHL a couple years ago uh he fought Chara that’s how that’s how willing this guy is to to to fight and to you know to plant his his skates in the ice and say I’m here he fought Chara uh so they’ve they’ve restocked their Providence Pipeline with some tough guys to ensure that some of these players like a Jackson Edward uh like a Freddy brune who played a lot last year but is still kind of young that they have some protection and some insurance for when they’re out there and and trying to assert themselves as who they are and for a guy like Jackson Edward that’s he’s going to have some guys that are going to come call and say you think you’re tough let’s see yeah no it’ be fun to watch there’ll be no shortage I think of it’d be like when Frederick first got to Providence feel like every week it’ be like Trent Frederick had five fights this week and was just fighting everyone dude that was like countar was like that this year felt like yeah exactly so definitely fun to watch all that goes down in Providence and the various leagues across North America and Europe with this uh Bruins Prospect pool um Ty we’re going to shift gears now and look at frency which happened it feels like it was five weeks ago but it was just on Monday we’ll break that down but before we do that let’s take a quick break here from our good friends over at prize picks the NBA finals are over and the Celtics are champions but there’s still so many ways for you to get in on the action and win up to 100 times your cash on prize picks as you in the world’s best players take the game to a whole new level on the court baseball diamond and much more with priz pick you could turn $10 into $1,000 in a single game watching your favorite sports this summer you can make a prize pick lineup in as little as 60 seconds you just need to pick more or less on two to six player stats projections and you’re locked in prize picks is America’s number one fantasy sports app with over 5 million active members get on the daily action your friends and become part of the prize picks Community today quick with draws easy gameplay and a huge selection of players and Stat types are what makes prize picks the number one daily fantasy sports app with the Finals over the hoop action doesn’t 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say probably the best center on the market in Elias slint home and if not you know probably not the best overall but absolutely probably the most intriguing in terms of his skill set in Nikita zadorov and again they add some other pieces Max Jones a pretty physical guy who’s going to be in that mix for the fourth line as well but just as a sweeping kind of summary what was kind of your overall impressions of what the Bruins did uh in free agency yeah I think the Elias slin Holm trade was a very I mean s sorry signing was a very obvious one in the sense that they had tried to trade for him multiple years now it it was a multi-year quest and once you can get that player for money alone and and not have to part with first round picks and second round picks and Prospects and all of that like it just made it a no-brainer and Don Sweeney basically told me as much that you know they felt they were close over time but by the end of their Pursuit they were kind of off offering packages that didn’t really entice Calgary because their cupboard was so Barren right and so um kind of natural fit you know you didn’t hear much about them being in on Shawn Monahan you heard Chandler Stevenson but not that strong and and then you look at that contract that Stephenson gets in in in Seattle and you’re like don’t don’t know what the [ __ ] the Kraken are doing man like what is the plan there yeah um and so um you know you just made sense right it was a natural move that ultimately made sense and so not surprising at all I I think the real surprise was that you know we we spent God how many shows did we spend going they’re gonna get a center and a Winger they’re gonna get a center and a wing they might need to get two Wingers Maro yeah Clair yeah we we went through every effing player that was imaginable to talk about that that they could get on the wings and then they throw us a curveball and they go they go d and so it’s really interesting that they their two long-term commitments were at left shot D and at Center one of which being obvious the second one being obvious but maybe not at that price point and that term so a bit of a curveball but I think when it comes to the biggest the biggest sighting we had to expect it right yeah no without a doubt and I think Lind Holm I think it’s only natural right for people to have some reservations about lindol in terms of last year was a bit of a struggle for him which he even kind of mentioned during his availability with us like you’re going into the last year of your contract you don’t have that Clarity the team you’re on in Calgary sucks so you find you figure out pretty early on you’re gonna get traded you go to Vancouver and he he finished strong with them but was in a weird spot for like pretty much the second half of the year right like was moved to the wing it’s not really where he’s best fit gets pushed down to like third line Center because you got Pon you got JT Miller ahead of him kind of just a like Vancouver trading for him was kind of weird anyway in terms of you know you saw that rumor what in like early March where Vancouver was like we need gensel instead I’m like yeah why didn’t you save up those assets to get gensel instead of a guy like lyol who was kind of a luxury on your team um so I understand that you know there’s reservations about lindome in terms of last year and whether he’s more of a elite second line Center in term of what his real value is but you look at what the Bruins need and the fact that yes maybe he is not a Bonafide franchise Topline Center he’s the best one got now and he makes your team a hell of a lot better with just him out there you know whether it’s him his presence alone where it moves guy like zaka to the wing if it bumps coil down a line where he can you know get easier matchups he’s not facing off against Sasha barov every single night or the equivalent of that um and again I think just his his skill set right like the fact that he’s defensively responsible which the Bruins value heavily put a lot of defensive responsibilities on their centerman um his face off numbers which that was a glaring issue last year there was how many times in like you know January and February we’d be like at the G and after a game where they lose a close one or they give up a lead late where were like wow like the production’s there what they missed the most with berson being gone is the faceoff numbers so you have that and again like I think people are are looking at that contract which like I don’t I thought it was going to be like seven times eight I thought it was going to be over eight for what he was going to get and again eight 7.75 but you look at what his contract is and yes like there’s the term involved but I’m kind of just staying focused in the now of the next two three years which I think you have to do with free agency and the fact that the cap hit should go down quite a bit the way these like I’d rather you give the money to these guys now before the cap jumps up in a couple of years um but I I just think you look at Lindo and what he can provide is he gonna be an 80 Point guy a 42 goal guy like he was in 2021 22 probably not I don’t I think that’s probably reaching but can he be 65o guy who’s great two-way player like you will absolutely take that because also I feel like people say that’s like berson light berson wasn’t an 80o guy like and that’s not to say that he’s the same player as lindol like we know how good bers was how greatly you know how great he impacted the game every time he was over the ice but if you get 65 points from another guy and you still have a guy like zaka guy like Coyle and these other good players who probably were in elevated roles last year they’re sloted down a spot or two makes your whole lineup that much better yeah 100% and the other part of it too is that like you know just breaking it down the last two years basically post uh grro and kachuck leaving uh Calgary you know his production hasn’t been great right like it’s 58 even strength points over the last two years between um between Calgary and uh Vancouver I believe um but when I looked this up the other day like it was it was more than Anthony Celli it was more than Tomas hurdle it was around the same as Ryan O’Reilly and Jordan Stall and the the great sort of whatever here is that they’re gonna put him with David pook they’re gonna put him on their top power play unit and you mentioned it it’s gonna make everyone around them better because the matchups they’re going to get now right like it’s not going to be seven games of of Charlie coil going head to-head with Alexander barov which is not a matchup that Cole can can win he could maybe Break Even but he’s not going to win that matchup yeah that and that’s best case scenario I think with Lind Holm you can maybe break even a little bit more given the two-way knowhow and the trickle down effect of having that kind of matchup and so I think what’s what’s important to note and I think I’ve said it here before and and if I if I have I’m sorry for repeating myself but like the Bruins were not Bridging the Gap up front between themselves and Florida on July 1 it wasn’t going to happen the best they could do was try to even the playing field a little bit more in terms of their defensive knowhow slotting guys into proper more advantageous spots and then going from there and so for me adding Lindholm and fortifying your fourth line to have a bit more jam and physicality and tone setting presence and you know cast another guy that can win faceoffs on the right side of the ice like like that’s important to me so I can’t be a hypocrite and say they got to get a center they got to get a center they got to get a center and then they get one using the only method that they really have to get one and then go no I don’t like it so I like it because I think it slots everyone into their proper spot or closer to it to your point or to to what you said off the Jump yes if and when this Bruins team wins the Stanley Cup I think Elias slome is your second line Center I think that’s that’s probably where he is but this is a start this is the start of a multi-year loadup that I believe that me and you believe they’re going to do where if there’s a if there’s a center to be signed in 2025 I think they’re going to be there too I really do because of these things that we’re talking about and so I can’t hate it from that standpoint because I think it gets you closer it doesn’t Elevate you above them but it gets you a lot closer than you were on June 30th in my opinion yeah I I think I’ve made this comparison a couple times but I kind of view the Bruins as kind of like the the golden nights preol where it’s like had a lot of guys down the middle who are more than capable right like William Carlson Stevenson all these players who are great in their own right and can absolutely hold down the fort but they’re going to be keeping tows on whoever else hits the market oh you’re not happy in your current spot or they’re dangling you on the market this guy really is gonna hit frency they’re goingon to be involved in all that stuff and again you look at like the seven-year term for lindol where it’s like well you’re gonna be paying him seven and seven you know 775 when he’s 35 and is he going to be a third line Center uh if the C jumps up to like 112 Million by 2029 30 would you see what third line centers make right like that’s the thing like that’s why you look at like now with that contract you look at like whatever Swan’s gonna eventually sign for what you hope is long term and locking him into seven and a half eight million something like that it’s gonna look really really good the more like the cap is really I mean barring some catastrophe it should be jumping up pretty steadily of like three four million per year next three or four years so um yeah I’m encouraged by that yeah so talking with somebody uh who knows more about this stuff than than we do um and they were happy to share with me some information um the cap is going to go up dramatically next year in the year after and potentially the year after that uh Utah is the great sort of unknown here in terms of uh how much revenue will they help kick in but it’s a big reason why Arizona to Utah made a lot of sense for the league and why they were kind of eager to do it you have the TV money that’s been kicking in um and this this this number blew my mind when they told me this was um you know that since they were introduced into the NHL Vegas and Seattle are top five in generating money in the league I mean these are new locations and that are printing money for the league the fan buying has been spectacular the stadiums are bumping every single night like they’re printing money and so the belief is that Utah will do the same now Utah has a lot to work on in terms of um its Arena they have a lot of obstructed views and things like that but but but but the fans are are in like like the fan base is already bought in already developed and so when they get their new Arena you know say five or six years down whatever however long that is like I think they broke ground on it I think they’re building it uh or they’re goingon to start soon um that’s going to generate even more hockey revenue and so I think why the league is has why the league is projected to go to this this new Stratosphere soon is because they’ve hit home runs here in Vegas and Seattle and so if that continues to be the case which they believe it will be um you know the cap is going to continue to go up and so to your point yeah like your third line centers and your third pairing D’s like they’re going to be making money that’s going to shock people just like if you told me 10 years ago hey goal is you’re going to make 10 10 million I’d be like what what like what do you mean hey you’re GNA have Fords making 13 a half million dollars I would say you can’t do that you have oetkin making 8.75 that’s the best you know that’s the best contract in hockey like you can’t do that things change over time right and so so long as the cap is going up it’s not going to be this B this big worry and so the people that I’ve talked to about the economics of this contract believe that it’s going to age well um and it might be a tad high but it’s not going to be like oh my God they got 13% of their cap tied up in one guy and he’s a third liner now because he’s 35 years old right no exactly so yeah I think we’re all positive not surprised in terms of what Lind Holm brings and again I think he’s due for a rebound with a full year next to poso so uh I think just makes the whole rest of the team better we’ll focus in now on zadorov who I think probably maybe more fans are maybe more excited about just in terms of the way he plays because it was more unexpected of what the signing is before we dive into that tie take a quick break here from our good friends over at game time tickets the Stanley Cup Final is over and what a thriller it was the Celtics are NBA champions with hockey and basketball playoffs over attention turns to the MLB and is there a better activity to do during the summer than hitting the ballparks nothing beats a summer night at Fenway Park a Fenway frag a ice cold beverage and the crack of the bat it’s a nice change of pace from the heart pounding intensity of the NHL and playoffs just pure relaxation good weather and great Vibes feel like every year I make a slew of fun memories at Fenway for me last year it was in Chicago watching the Red Sox take down the Cubs at historic Wrigley Field got to say Cubs fans very nice people want to go to a game this summer go check out game time the authorized ticket Marketplace of Major League Baseball which makes getting tickets faster and easier prices on the game time app actually go down the closer it gets to first pitch that’s right they go down I love how easy to navigate the app is The Flash Deals are awesome if you want to go to a game last minute it’s the perfect place save up to 60% off buying last minute tickets for sports concerts comedy theater Etc not to mention the views from all seats in the venue take the guest workk out of buying MLB tickets with Game Time download the game time app create an account use code clns for $20 off your first purchase terms apply again create an account and redeem code clns for $20 off download game time today last minute tickets lowest price guaranteed now back to the show shout out once again to our good friends over at game time tickets right Ty looking at Nikita zadorov a player who’s has the title of maybe the most imposing figure in the NHL it’s like a freight train uh very very physical adds a definitely a different element to the Bruins in their top four on defense I I did the numbers now I think with zadorov in place the average height and weight of the Bruins defense is 63 220 PBS so uh definitely adds a different element there what was your overall uh your take on them signing going and getting a guy like zadorov on the market well let let’s start with the idea that he’s basically a full-time member of this team I don’t think it was possible to have a greater height discrepancy going from one guy to another than it is going from Mt grizli to Nikita zadorov so if you’re a sizeist out there uh if you’re a big believer in in tall blue liners uh zadorov is your guy and and I like what he can bring from a tenacity standpoint I like what he can bring from an attitude standpoint and and you know I think it’s probably similar to Pat maroon when you know talking to players when they added Pat maroon it was a sense of everyone feels bigger when he’s out there and so Charlie McAvoy will probably feel a bit more you know imposing knowing that he has Nikita zorov to his left uh Brandon Carlo would probably feel a little bit a little bit better you know going into corners and retrieving pucks with a for cheer bearing down on him knowing that if a guy tries any nonsense zorov is going to be right over there and so it’s going to help Mason lowai you know the odd chance that it’s a lefty and Lefty out there like like everyone’s going to feel better having this guy out there and so that’s important about his addition um also going back to what we talked about earlier like this is them emphasizing defense defensive you know maybe realizing that they’re not built to outscore teams so maybe they got to focus on trying to win games two to one 3 to2 but having the Personnel in place that allows them to do that more effectively and less sort of we talked about this all the time last year White Knuckle High wirring kind of act where you’re like oh my God are they gonna hang on like this this maybe allows them to win those games a bit more comfortably knowing they have a six foot seven 6 foot eight guy back there um who is physically imposing and also improving as a defenseman yeah I think that’s the the biggest thing I took away from it because I think when you first heard like I think it was like when or last week before fre agency started like the Bruins were interested in zadorov and I was like H I don’t know because like I think you you have that that label because I think we’ve seen multiple times especially during his time with Colorado or early on with Calgary where would go for a big hit would kind of freelance put himself out of position there was that one game in Calgary right uh where the Bruins played where he like Siz trying to think who he hit was it like zaka or someone he like went out of position for a hit led to an odd man Rush uh led to a goal for the Bruins and sprock a late comeback in that game it was that West Coast trip where omark had the uh the goalie goal I believe so um he’s been and again that’s not to say that’s going to be completely negated right he’s still going to have games or plays where you’re like what are you doing there but again like if he makes up for it in terms of not just his physicality but I think when you listen to Don Sweeney right after FR agency ended or they their main spending ended um they kind of view I think that Vancouver playoff run as kind of what they think they can get out of him maybe not eight points in 13 games but a dynamic player like he’s more than I think in their mind just a physical tone Setter and I I think it’s also important that even before you know he maybe took that next step forward over this most recent playoff run he’s a big dude obviously but he’s not this traffic cone or he’s this very like you know uh like anchor out there that he takes a while to get rolling like he’s a really mobile defenseman when he was drafted he was known as like a 40 50 point defenseman in you know the junior leagues as well so he can move um he’s really actually underrated in terms of his uh transition game really good at retrieving the puck good at exiting the puck uh you know with it on his stick which is encouraging um that’s a guy that you look at you know when Charlie mavo I think was at his best is when you know him and grizzli were so good together it’s that GIS could retrieve the puck get the first pass get going and that made uh Charlie McAvoy that much better zadorov does the same thing just in a different way like zidor is just so big that he can retrieve the puck good luck knocking him off the knocking the puck off of his stick and he can just kind of fer it through um and if you have a guy like that who is that size who can make life easier for makoy and get him going and zor even mentioned this like if makoy can avoid doing that dirty work and just look down the other end of the ice and be aggressive like that’s when makavo is at his best when we see him activating and bringing the puck down the half wall and trying to make things happen or res searching and trying to lay out a guy with a hit that’s when makavo is kind of playing free and playing at his best and gal zadorov should be able to complement that so you’ll take the hits you’ll take those things are obviously the Hallmarks of his game but he’s more than just a you know he’s not a Joel Edmonson a 65 guy who will lay out a guy but then you’ll be like all what else is he kind of bring to the table zor can bring more and I think the Bruins are kind of banking on that by signing him to this steel yeah 100% and actually I had to go look it up he hits de Brusque which then opens the door for zaka to score so that’s that’s why you that’s why you were thinking it was zaka um yeah you know transporting the Puck is is what what really intrigues me like watching more film breaking More film down on him like he’s gotten noticeably better at that and I think his playoff in Vancouver was really impressive in that regard um you know just just taking some more chances but not doing it at the expense of defense and that was sort of the knock on him in Buffalo and Colorado and and you know it felt like man this guy’s going be like a one trick pony he’s just he’s you know he’s throwing his body around times at the expense of you know what’s happening in his own Zone um so I like the addition from that standpoint the biggest thing for me is just going to be penalties like can he can he curb that a little bit because if he doesn’t okay well now he’s in the box and now you’re putting the strain on Lind Holm and lorai and Peak and part of the reason why you’re signing him is to put those those players in more you know skill set friendly kind of spots they’re are they are more offensively minded so if you’re taking penalties at the same rate you were a year ago I believe he was fourth in the NHL I want to say and penalties taken a year ago um his penalty differential was the was I believe the worst in hockey think he was a minus 28 in terms of penalties drawn versus penalties taken um so if he’s still in the box a whole bunch that’s going to force those guys to kill more which is going to negate the advantages of signing him um and so that’s something I’m I’m I’m a little bit worried about however bringing in Jay leech having Joe sacko running the PK I’m sure they can figure something out with the stick positioning um with how he attacks Puck carriers that can curb that a little bit Jay leech I I think personally ran a tremendous defensive system in Seattle to the point where like it made guys that are maybe not as good as they looked in Seattle much better you know what I’m saying like and so that’s something I want to see I want to see how they get him in the lab there and try to say like hey don’t take that route because you’re putting yourself open for a hook or open for a trip you know like let’s just work on some little things here curve it just a just a tad here because the Bruins already took too many penalties a year ago too many that that’s got to be curbed and so when you bring in a guy like this everything we’ve just talked about that we like about his game we like about his development it can go up the window if he’s still taking 70 minutes and penalties and they’re all miners you know what I’m saying like that like that’s that’s got to get worked on for sure yeah absolutely no he definitely has some things to work on there will be those plays that’ll drive you crazy but definitely adds a different element I think Bruns fans are probably excited about just what he bring he’s also just like a fun player to watch like it is Controlled Chaos when he’s out there kind of like not as chaotic but like even like you look at I think it was game one of the Bruins Maple Leafs where it was Pat maroon kind of first legitimate game really with the Bruns where he’s like knocking guys into the bench challenging players like you get that from zadorov like every single night like he is he is chaos he’s a fun player to watch so I think Brun s should get excited about that if he landed if he landed in Florida we’d be going oh my God he got be kiding me oh my God yeah it’s like a meaner a meaner Radco GES who doesn’t sit on people so yes exactly um but you look at you know zidor brings a new element I think Bruns fans like you know the fact that their Decor now is arguably one through six one of the deepest if not the most versatile in terms of Mobility size everything you want and you’ve got a great goalie and Jeremy Swan as well uh but the decision to sign zadorov where you have you know your allocating five million put you out of the running in terms of maybe signing a top six forward you know I don’t know TFI Maro any one of those guys even a guy like duclair who went for a little bit cheaper at you know I think was at 375 with the Islanders um so they’re out of the running for that you lose obviously Jake de Brusque you lose like other guys that add secondary scoring and D hen who I forgot he had 17 goals last year so uh in terms of just their overall approach right of prioritizing the defense over a middle six Winger uh do you think that was the right call or uh how do you view kind of the the path they kind of opted for with this money that they had yeah you know I I I think it might be as simple as them realizing that they not realizing but saying like we’re going to spend big money on our goalie we’re going to lose some guys let’s fortify the middle of the ice and the defense and basically Embrace being a low-scoring wipe him out defensively kind of team and so I think for them internally they probably look at we’re going to get more goals out of Pavo zaka by playing the wing versus the center position when I don’t hate that philosophy because there were a few times last year where I think zaka gave you everything he could at Center but I did think it affected his offensive awareness if that makes sense I I feel like he was kind of heading the swivel all the time almost to a detriment um now it’s hey man just play left wing and fire that rocket please shoot Puck more please just shoot the pck more um and I think they look at sort of what I mentioned earlier where getting lindol and lowai into more offensive positions I think the Bruins realize that Lind Holm has to be more has to be more of a guy who touches the puck more who has the puck on a stick more his offensive game is more confident when he is shooting the puck more and gets some results I mean think about this like think about how many times that we watched lindol last year and we would turn to each other and go he looks good tonight and it would basically pretty much always be a game where he had the puck on his stick stick yeah he’s not a begin 90% of the shifts in in the dzone kind of guy he’s just not and that’s okay that’s not a knock against him as a person it’s just his style of play he needs a puck on a stick more so I think they look at that in low ride and they say we’re going to get what do you want to say 18 goals from their back end from those two guys let’s just say you know Nine and Nine maybe one hits 10 maybe one hits 12 um so they’re trying to replace it by just slotting people in better spots you know yeah yeah no I agree and I also think they’ve probably taken a pragmatic look at it right where they I think if you’re looking for a 20 goal score you can kick that can down the road a little bit right where it’s like all right we have multiple plans internally right now right as far as all right we can roll with uh you know Trent Frederick maybe he’s up for a top six spot and we give him a featur role maybe it’s a guy like geeky um you know maybe it’s like Potters a huge jump and all of a sudden he’s your second line Center and they change things around around with that as well or like from based on what we heard quite a bit from Dev Camp maybe this is the year they give a guy like lella look right and again like is that set in stone that it could work no but like please just give the guy a chance at this point like that’s a guy that I feel like this point doesn’t have much more to prove in terms of offensively down the AHL and you hear about kind of the knocks against him from like what muell has mentioned in terms of like defensive accountability practice habits those kinds of things kind of spoke pretty highly of him on Wednesday at Dev camp in terms of like thinking that he’s right on the the cusp of breaking through there and got a lot better as the year kind of went on so if you’re a lysel and you finally have this chance and maybe for him I feel like L is one of those players that’s like all right I’ve hit my ceiling what’s next like if he’s probably like one of those players that feels like um you know give me a shot and I’ll show you what I can do because he’s a guy that is great skater really Dynamic player if he’s a guy that you give him some a chance which would be ideal and he runs with it and again this is incumbent on him to really have a strong training camp in preseason but if he’s a guy that can [ __ ] into that role and give you 15 goals or something like that that’d be huge for this team in terms of um addressing that issue internally on a cheap deal so I think the Bruins have internal candidates they can turn to you and again you’ve got multiple ones in place if things backfire whether it’s Frederick’s playing too high up geeki is not in the right spot LEL or merul Love Don’t pan out but if all those options do fail the Bruns can also go into the middle of the Year and be like all right as the case every trade deadline there will be four or five guys who can give you 15 to 20 goals that are going to be dangled on the market we can we can give up assets to get one of those players if you’re if you sign Tyler T Foley and the left side of your defense is severely weakened and you signed uh Alec Martinez or a stop Gap who’s not up to P if you’re trying to find like a zorov especially like guys like Joel Edmonson who are 65 and kind of not that great go for like a first round pick at the deadline a guy like zadorov who’s 66 mobile and has the sing of arguably the most imposing guy those guys don’t hit the M if they do you’re giving up like a premium Prospect and a first on top of it so I could see the Bruins being like let’s throw the money now at a player like that that everyone probably is coveting and then if all these internal options fail we’ll address things at the deadline if it gets to that point yeah and I think you just highlighted it that that as currently constituted on June 30th and there are other guys out there they could have signed we all know but they were an injury away from either Mason lorai or parker wther spoon or Michael Callahan like one of these guys being elevated into a role that may be above their 24 25 ceiling um that’s not to say they couldn’t handle it or they they could be ready sure but do you want to put yourself in that spot off the Jump because you want to score more you know like there’s a ying and a Yang here right like and so I think that that there’s a way of them looking at this and saying if we’re going to have struggles and if we’re going to be injured we’d rather have the depth at defense than upfront and so I I I I back that in theory um now we got to see how these guys look like if Fabian lysel or GE G meloff are dare I say both prove that they’re ready well you just you just answered a big problem for you and you look at your roster and you’re more willing to risk losing a Justin brazzo um or someone to waivers if you have to do that which they probably wouldn’t they probably wouldn’t but if they do you feel comfortable about it if you were to lose a defenseman and now you got you got Billy Sweezy who who am I like I’m not trying to like knock these guys but you get these guys that are are not quite ready for full-time work playing key roles in full-time work that’s that’s a bit more damaging to I think your overall season and your ability to be a top three team in your Division and so to your point like you said it like it’s easier to address Wingers and scoring at the deadline than is defense every year a defenseman goes for a king’s Ransom whereas there’s always a Winger that at 245 on Deadline day is had for like a third round pick in like a mid- tier Prospect you’re like oh that’s that’s not that bad actually so I think it’s the Bruins picking the the you know you’ve heard the lesser of two evils I think they’re picking the less expensive of two evils should things hit the fan for whatever reason next season yeah exactly and again we could be running a podcast in January and being like the Bruins lost another 21 game like what the hell that could happen but it does seem like at the very least um you really hope during camp this gives you an opportunity where they give a guy like lell look it’s kind of what we mentioned before with like a guy like beer last year of like we just need Clarity right like get let’s find out what they have in these guys the same thing with like uh this past year it’s like Brenan busy who’s now in this weird limbo it’s like why don’t you give him a statud to get his feet wet or see what you had in the player like in an NHL game like give LEL a look see if he runs with it if he hits a wall if he’s frustrated he doesn’t pan out then you finally know and you can you can move on or you can uh change gears there I I think right now it’s all about again like I think he’d feel a lot better if like the Bruins were able to get a guy like Duke cair for three and a half or something I’d give them an A in terms of the offseason if you’ve addressed and have like some solid options all across your depth chart there is some uncertainty there but um as you said if you’re able to get a player like lella merul up to hit and again it’s not to say like you’re expecting a 20 and 20 season from these guys but if you have a cost controlled young asset who can give you like more skill especially uh up front at that price you will absolutely take that and it’ll be a great problem to have and it’s a a great opportunity for a guy like lysell where the window should be there like the path is more open to him for him than it was like ptra last year ptra had no business putting together a a stretch like that in the preseason and accelerating his timeline like now it falls on a guy like light out to really roll with it and if he’s able to hit it he will have a spot like on on this roster come October 8 in Florida 100% And there’s an element here of like all right let’s find out like I I I don’t need meroff putting up another Point per game year in the AHL I got to know if he can play here like I gotta know lysel first round pick 202 21 first round pick we’re going to start to see those guys filter in next season you know those who haven’t already they’re going to be given spots and so I like it from the standpoint of like you’re putting the onus on the player to basically say hey you you know you want to be here show it we’re not blocking it anymore you’re not getting you’re not getting roadblocked by like David pan you know or or Blake wheeler or any of these guys that they could have signed or or whatever you know like like there’s no jvr in your way right now like it it’s on you man like there’s there’s a legit opening here in the top six when he wants to grab it grab it if you don’t well then Who you gonna blame you can’t blame us and so I like the idea of putting the onus on the player at the same time however the Bruins coaching staff has to give that person a fair shot yeah that’s how I look at like you can’t utilize Fabian lysel the way that you utilized him a year ago where he was playing 10 minutes and I’m pretty sure he was playing with like Jason Magna and like another guy that we knew was going to be in the miners and that’s not a knock on Magna but like no no play him with NHL Talent see if he can skate with NHL Talent that’s what I want to see um he’s proven he can play with AHL guys look at the numbers I gotta know if he can play with poock I gotta know if he can play with a you know a Marian and a Coyle or a Frederick and a and a ptra like I got to see that so I hope that they give those players Fair shots with kind of talents you know I was real [ __ ] a year ago when when they gave melov six minutes a night on a fourth line I said what is the point you got you got a thousand of those guys let let me put him with zaka and poso let’s see if we got something here so I want to see that that so it goes both ways the players got to develop the players got to show he’s ready but the coaching staff has to give that player a fair shot and so that’s what I want to see in training camp if I’m the Bruins yeah absolutely it’ be it’s now all a sudden a really fascinating storyline to follow at camp now in terms of these internal guys and hopefully a guy like lysel makes most opportunity and as you said Montgomery and his staff give him the leeway where there’s going to be bumps along the road to kind of see the forest over the trees in terms of what he could be whether it’s this year and the years ahead if he carves out a role so be interesting to watch once we get to that point uh Ty thank you for carving through uh weeks worth of news all in the span of a week on this podcast we appreciate it um where can we read your stuff where can we listen to you on the airwaves all that good stuff yeah you can find me at 985 Sports sub.com uh you can also hear me on the podcast the sportsub underground with myself and my friend Matt doll uh that’s pretty much it I don’t think I’m on the radio anytime soon it is vacation season but it’s also vacation season for me in the sense that um I we’ve been going hard for so long man as you know that it’s kind of nice to to not have to go anywhere for a few weeks yeah so I don’t think I’m going be on the air much very much but that’s always subject to change you know they fire a coach they they sign San we’ll see what happens so um I expect the latter not the former just for the record but but you know you never know what could happen in this in this world so that’s where you can find me and how about yourself yes you can read my stuff over at boston.com in the Boston Globe we have you covered every step of the way this offseason for whatever late breaking news does happen uh throughout the rest of this summer as well um you can also find me on Twitter X Conor Ryan 93 so uh Ty thank you again this is episode 245 of poke the bear you fans have a great rest of your week [Music]

Join Connor Ryan and Ty Anderson in episode 245 of “Poke the Bear” as they dive into the Bruins’ recent developments at Dev Camp and Free Agency. From highlighting promising college prospects like Riley Duran and Oscar Yelich to discussing the strategic signings of Elias Lindholm and Nikita Zadorov, this episode covers it all.

Learn about the team’s focus on defensive strength, the impact of underrated prospects like Jackson Edward and Ryan Walsh, and the exciting prospects aiming to secure roster spots through training camp performances. Stay tuned for insights on the Bruins’ multi-year plan for success and the dynamic roster decisions shaping their upcoming season.

0:00 – Intro
2:41 – Bruins Development Camp Overview
7:43 – Player Development Insights
10:37 – Expectations at BC
13:09 – Unique Prospect Development
15:26 – Underrated Prospect Watch
17:28 – Potential Seventh Round Gem
19:28 – Providence Pipeline Toughness
30:38 – Best case scenario
33:30 – Cap increase projections
38:18 – Nikita Zadorov’s impact
42:51 – Zadorov’s puck retrieval
46:00 – Lab entry concerns
53:23 – Potential depth challenges
54:57 – Addressing roster uncertainties

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