Hockey is so close we can almost taste it. Early August signals that our beloved fall sports are returning shortly.
College football is this month and NFL Sundays are right around the corner. The good news is that hockey follows suit and all will be right in the world.
Training camp is approaching and it’s never too early to look into things regarding the Boston Bruins, who have a lot to look forward to. There is the return of Matthew Poitras from injury, as well as a position battle for the second-line right-wing position.
All that stuff will sort itself out. As the 2024-25 season approaches, let’s take a look into four bold predictions for the Bruins entering the season.
Elias Lindholm Replicates Career Season from 2021-22
There is a lot to be happy about with the addition of Elias Lindholm to the Bruins. He can immediately slot in as the number-one center and also will be a key component in the faceoff department. Lindholm is a faceoff specialist and can come onto the ice for key draws at important moments of the game. He is no Patrice Bergeron, but that was a guy who excelled in those moments. Also, Lindholm’s ability to succeed in the faceoff circle will help lead to better puck possession for the Bruins. He has the tools to be an effective player and this bold prediction is for him to replicate his career best season in 2021-22 with the Calgary Flames.
Lindholm was a force to be reckoned with and was part of one of the best lines in hockey. He was flanked by star wingers Johnny Gaudreau and Matthew Tkachuk and collectively the trio scored 73 goals. Lindholm was a point per game player having 82 points in all 82 games and reaped the benefits of playing with those guys. There is reason to believe he can have this type of season again.
He won’t have two wingers to play with that are elite to that level, but he does have one. David Pastrnak is one of the best wingers in all of hockey and playing with him will have benefits. Only one player has scored more goals than Pastrnak since the 2021-22 season and Pastrnak is coming off two-straight 100 point campaigns. Pastrnak can drive a line and Lindholm has an elite running mate to help increase his production.
There is another element to that season Lindholm will replicate: he will also be a Selke Trophy finalist. During the 2021-22 season, he finished tied for first in takeaways (55), while also playing on the penalty kill and winning 52.9% of his faceoffs. In a Bruins system that prides itself on defense, Lindholm is the perfect fit and can shine in that regard.
Lindholm is a player who will shine bright offensively and defensively and his first season in Boston will be a big hit.
Bruins’ New Tandem Will Be As Good As The Last
This might be one of the bolder predictions for the Bruins this season. The tandem of Jeremy Swayman and Linus Ullmark was stellar the past four seasons. For the past three seasons (2021-24), the Bruins have finished top 10 in save percentage and finished top five in goals against. Defensively, the Bruins were good, but the goaltenders were the backbone of the organization. Ullmark went on to capture a Vezina Trophy during the 2022-23 season and Swayman cemented himself as the team’s number one during 2023-24. With Ullmark out and Joonas Korpisalo in, the new tandem will be as good as the last.
Let’s start with Swayman, who is hungry for more and wants the crease. With Ullmark gone, the crease belongs to him. He’s coming off a strong season with a 2.53 goals against average (GAA), .916 save percentage (SV%), and a fourth-best-in-the-league 18.4 goals saved above expected. His 2023-24 season was no fluke and he showed he is a starting-calibre goalie. However, it was in the playoffs he showed his true self and how valuable he is.
In a postseason where the tandem was going to be fully utilized, Swayman took the crease like he owned it. The rest is history and Swayman went on to have one of the better playoff performances for a Bruins goalie in recent memory. Korpisalo is no Ullmark, but there is reason to believe he can thrive in Boston.
Korpisalo has shown he can be a capable goaltender in this league. A good example is his 2022-23 season. With the Columbus Blue Jackets, he was performing good but not great. When he got traded to the Los Angeles Kings, his play elevated behind that tightly-constructed defense. Korpisalo saw his SV% rise from .911 to .921 and his GAA lower from 3.17 to 2.13. Hockey fans also saw Cam Talbot take a disastrous season with the Senators and turn it into a strong campaign with the Kings as well. How does this all factor with the Bruins?
Korpisalo is joining a team that’s more defensively structured. The Bruins tend to keep things more to the perimeter and are good at defending in high danger areas. This will bode well for Korpisalo and being able to work with goalie coach Bob Essensa can help retune his game.
Trent Frederic Has Career Season in Contract Year
Trent Frederic‘s journey has been something to watch. This is a player that went from being a bruising enforcer to showing what he’s truly capable of. Bruins fans will always remember is fight against Brandon Tanev, but what Frederic has done is cement himself as a well-rounded 200-foot player.
Frederic stands at 6-foot-3 and weighs 200 pounds, but he can skate well and can bring a speed element to the lineup. Also, he is a good forechecker and does a lot of good work below the faceoff circles. That is why when he and center Charlie Coyle are ever deployed on a line, they are difficult to play against. Frederic is versatile, as he can play both center and the winger positions. While he can be a bruising power forward, he has shown his offensive upside.
Frederic has progressed when it comes to producing. During the 2021-22 season, he finished with 18 points, which was a step in the right direction. While everyone was having a career season during the teams’ Presidents’ Trophy year (2022-23), Frederic scored 17 goals and 31 points and helped bring an extra layer of depth scoring. He continued to climb the mountain and popped off for a career campaign during 2023-24 with 18 goals and 40 points.
Trent Frederic makes it 2-0 Bruins. pic.twitter.com/xruVLyGj9q
— Conor Ryan (@ConorRyan_93) January 26, 2024
Frederic had tremendous offensive upside. He uses his speed and frame to create chances. Also, he has a wicked shot and a nose for the back of the net. Over the last three seasons, he’s put those tools together and continued to develop. The last two seasons, he finished with a respectable 14.2 and 14.6 shooting percentages.
With Frederic going into a contract year, him growing further and having a career campaign shouldn’t be a surprise. With the vacant spot on the second line right wing open, he should get a look if guys like Fabian Lysell and Georgii Merkulov cannot come through. If deployed properly, the production can come and he has shown that the last three seeasons.
Bruins Reach the Eastern Conference Final
This prediction may be the boldest on the entire list. The Eastern Conference is going to be open for the taking. When looking at the Atlantic Division, the Bruins stack up nicely against all the teams. The Florida Panthers will still be good, but they lost key players in their Stanley Cup championship lineup. The Tampa Bay Lightning and Toronto Maple Leafs will be eyeing top-three spots, but the Bruins are right there with them.
As for the Metropolitan Division, that division is wide open for the taking. The New Jersey Devils should be a complete lock to make the playoffs, as well as the New York Rangers. The Carolina Hurricanes will still be good but not the powerhouse unit they’ve been due to players who have left the organization. There are numerous teams that will be on the bubble and fighting for a playoff spot, but the Bruins making the Conference Finals should not be ruled out.
The Bruins signing Lindholm and defenseman Nikita Zadorov makes them a deeper team than last season. While they’ve lost guys such as Jake DeBrusk, Danton Heinen, and other veterans they brought in for one season, the nucleus of the team is very much intact.
This is the final year of head coach Jim Montgomery’s contract, so having success will be crucial for him. The Bruins managed to defy the odds last season, finishing second in the Atlantic Division and with 109 points. With a wide open Conference and an improved roster, going the distance is a likely possibility.
Expecting Bold Things to Happen
This season is going to be filled with lots of joy for the Bruins. New faces in new places lead to expectation, but even for guys who have been in Boston for a while, expectations are high too. Lindholm is in a good spot to have success and him replicating his career-best season isn’t out of the question. The Bruins’ goaltending has always been a position of strength and will be and Frederic is poised to have a career season in a contract year. The sky is the limit and the Bruins advancing far in the playoffs should never be ruled out.
