Cassidy, B’s working out

Plan looks to be right on track

A year ago many of us had a hunch that the Bruins were on the right track with their organizational makeover.

Now there is ample, tangible proof of that.

Not only do they appear to have the cornerstone of their defense for the next 15 years in rookie Charlie McAvoy, there are other promising youngsters sprinkled throughout the lineup. Jake DeBrusk is having a similar season at the NHL level as he had in the AHL last season, fighting through some growing pains on the way to becoming a reliable player. Matt Grzelcyk has handled himself well as a heady, puck-moving defenseman. Sean Kuraly leads a fourth line that has created a hard-working identity for itself. Anders Bjork is showing signs of getting his game back after suffering an early season concussion.

Perhaps most importantly, the B’s have the right coach for this current collection of talent. Just as Claude Julien was the perfect guy to bring along young players such as Patrice Bergeron, David Krejci and Milan Lucic upon taking the reins a decade ago, successor Bruce Cassidy has demonstrated he’s the man to shepherd the likes of McAvoy, DeBrusk, Grzelcyk and Bjork into the future. Taking over for a Stanley Cup winner who had been at the Bruins helm for 10 seasons could have been daunting, but Cassidy was ready for his second opportunity as a head coach.

Now, nearly halfway through the season, the B’s are something that not many people believed they were back in Septem-

ber: contenders. They may not be in the top tier of Stanley Cup hopefuls, but there are no behemoths, no unbeatable teams in this league right now. If the Vegas Golden Knights can be in the mix — and they are — then why not the Bruins?

The question now is how much of a contender does general manager Don Sweeney believe his team is this season. For not only do the B’s have good young players developing at the NHL level, they have a bunch of high level prospects both in the system and under their control in the amateur ranks, players that could possibly fetch them a difference-making veteran if dangled at the trade deadline. It’s not time to clean out the cupboard, but Sweeney can afford to be a little aggressive.

Championship windows tend to open a little sooner than people expect, and close a little quicker, too, especially in a salarycap world. Judging from a pretty good sample size, the Bruins’ window now appears open, if only a crack.

Injuries beset Jets

Another handful of highend players were put on injured reserve last week. In Columbus, Alexander Wennberg (back) and Cam Atkinson (foot) are out for 4-6 weeks. In Manhattan, things seem a bit more serious for

Chris Kreider, out indefinitely with a blood clot in his arm. In Winnipeg, Mark Scheifele is out 6-8 weeks with a shoulder injury. He has 15 goals and 23 assists in 38 games and the loss could hurt the Jets in the ultra-competitive Central Division, and it also forces Blake Wheeler to play center.

“We’re just going to have to fight,” Wheeler said. “It’s going to be one of those things that it may not look as pretty . . . but there’s still a lot of fight in our group and there’s still a lot of capable bodies in here to get a job done. That’s the key for us, we want to keep this thing afloat, so that when (Scheifele) comes back, we’ll be even stronger for it.”

Cole might be a fit

As the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins continue to hover just outside the playoff bracket, trade chatter is heating up, with the currently injured Kris Letang near the top of the list. But one name that’s been out there for months is defenseman Ian Cole, (24-6, minus-6 in 31 games).

“There’s certainly been those conversations, both from the outside and the inside,” Cole told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette last week.

As a left-shot defenseman with a reasonable salary ($2.1 million) on an expiring contract, Cole would be an interesting name to watch for the Bruins.