Bruins report card

The grades are in and it appears it was a tough couple of semesters for a few Bruins. It is hard to imagine the B’s beating the likes of the Tampa Bay Lightning to get to win a Stanley Cup, especially with the questionable health on the back end, but it was still a disappointment that this team did not get past the New York Islanders. While GM Don Sweeney did a good job of augmenting at the deadline, the B’s still wound up being a top-heavy team that did not get enough help from the supporting cast members. The bottom-six was littered with subpar performances from players who can be and have been better. Here are the grades:

Charlie McAvoy

The BU product stepped out from under the departed Zdeno Chara’s shadow and became the true No. 1 defenseman he’s been expected to be. He kept the B’s D corps afloat when it was ravaged with injuries. McAvoy is also developing his offensive and power-play game, taking over on the No. 1 PP.

Matt Grzelcyk

Grzelcyk was hampered by injuries, limiting him to 37 games. But his season started to take off when paired with his fellow Terrier. He showed in the Washington series that his maneuverability can effectively counter size mismatches. But his two giveaways that led directly to goals in the B’s elimination game on Long Island will no doubt leave a bad taste in his mouth.

Mike Reilly

Reilly was a very good and necessary addition who, unlike some of his new teammates, displayed a good knack for getting his shots through to create loose pucks in front. He did have a couple of key missed assignments in the Islanders series, but Reilly would be a worthy re-sign.

Brandon Carlo

Carlo missed a good chunk of the regular season with two injuries (concussion, oblique) and then was knocked out of the playoffs with a second concussion. When he’s not there, it is clear the B’s dearly miss him.