One glaring weakness has plagued the Boston Bruins through two years of missing the playoffs, and ultimately led to the eventual firing of longtime, highly successful head coach Claude Julien: defense, defense, defense.
The lack thereof, more specifically, has been a problem.
How they got here
Prior to and immediately after the 2014-15 season, the Bruins traded Johnny Boychuk and Dougie Hamilton to the New York Islanders and Calgary Flames, respectively. Neither was sufficiently replaced in the top-two pairings until this season, and it happened almost by accident.
Twenty-year-old Brandon Carlo is averaging 21:19 on the Bruins' blue line, the third-highest average ice time on the team and third among all rookie defensemen. He's also chipped in four goals and nine assists and is a positive possession player at even strength.
That Boston is relying on him so heavily at this stage of his career speaks volumes about its deficiencies at the position.
Somehow, Carlo's name has popped up in trade reports, mostly linking him to his home state of Colorado in a deal involving Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog.
Boston would be foolish to make such deal, and here's why.
System stocked
(Photo courtesy: Getty Images)
Over the past two drafts, the Bruins have managed to stock up on promising defensive prospects, with Carlo representing just one piece of a much-needed rebuild at the position.
- 2016: Charlie McAvoy (14th), Ryan Lindgren (49th)
- 2015: Jakub Zboril (13th), Carlo (37th), Jeremy Lauzon (52nd)
Going further back, players like Linus Arnesson (60th in 2013), Matt Grzelcyk (85th in 2012), and Rob O'Gara (151st in 2011) are already in the AHL, but the jury's still out on whether they can make the leap to the big club.
Meanwhile, Zdeno Chara is nearing the end of his run as defensive stalwart, and Torey Krug sticks out as the only sure thing moving forward, ill-advised contract extensions handed to Adam McQuaid and Kevan Miller notwithstanding.
When Boston's already working from a position of weakness, it would not seem prudent to tap into this pipeline to shore up a relatively solid forward core, especially when teams are rightfully asking for the likes of Carlo and McAvoy.
Playoff drought would continue
It's as simple as this: If the Bruins deal Carlo, they'd weaken an already troubled position and therefore greatly limit their chances of making the playoffs for the first time since 2014.
With a week to go before the trade deadline, heading into Wednesday's game in Anaheim, the Bruins rank first in Corsi For at five-on-five (55.41) but 29th in shooting percentage (6.21).
In other words, the Bruins as currently constructed are due for an offensive uptick, and signs of life have already sprouted with 16 goals in four games under interim head coach Bruce Cassidy.
The goals will come as the team's shooting percentage climbs closer to league average. That means it's not really necessary to weaken the blue line in search of a forward, especially one like Landeskog whose shot rate has dropped in each of the past four seasons.
General manager Don Sweeney would be wise to stay the course and trust the process, believing the roster as it stands can and will make the playoffs. Whether he's overruled from on high remains to be seen, but it would only set the Bruins back further than they've already fallen.
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