Cassidy and DeBrusk hash it out
Nobody was happy with the season Jake DeBrusk had last year – not the organization, not the player. The 24-yearold winger, who was only two years removed from a 27-goal season, mustered just 5-9-14 totals in 41 games as he bounced around the lineup. It was such a rough go for DeBrusk that coach Bruce Cassidy opted not to have his usual coach-to-player evaluation conversation with DeBrusk on breakup day, opting to give it a little time so as not to deal with the just-finished season when things were still “raw,” as Cassidy put it then.
Eventually, they had that conversation before DeBrusk headed home to Edmonton. While he wasn’t willing to give up all the details of the meeting, Cassidy said that the communication – among other things – needs to be better, and he took his share of the blame for that.
“We had a good talk about some of the things that didn’t allow him to be at the top of his game away from the rink. With the Covid protocols, it affects people differently, what they can and can’t do. And Jake was one of those guys that, being by himself, it was a little tougher on him,” said Cassidy on Wednesday.
“So we discussed some of those things and how we could help as a staff and how it probably falls on both of us to reach out a little more. In today’s game, with today’s athlete, there has to be a little more of that and so we both held ourselves accountable in that regard. And we’re hoping that making the lines of communication better will bleed into the on-ice performance and that will take care of itself. And at the end of the day, the message is the same – how can he help the Bruins win? That’s what we ask of every player. So I won’t share any more than that, the specifics. But those are a couple of areas we touched on both off-the-ice and again on-the-ice the expectation. Jake looks like he’s ready to go.”
For the first time since arriving in Boston, DeBrusk will not be attached to David Krejci to start the season. Krejci is back home in the Czech Republic, so DeBrusk will start in the bottom six with Brad Marchand and the re-upped Taylor Hall ahead of him on the left wing depth chart. It appears he’ll get his first look with newly acquired center Erik Haula.
“Again, he’ll have to find some chemistry if it ends up being Haula in the middle. But at the end of the day, the message stays the same – be the best version of yourself and your ice time will take care of itself and you’ll complement anybody you play with,” said Cassidy.
Cassidy looking for Studnicka improvements
The talk of the summer has been the physical development of Jack Studnicka, who added 15 pounds of muscle to help him better handle the rigors of NHL play.
With Charlie Coyle not expected to be with the main group because of his ongoing knee surgery recovery, Studnicka should get some decent preseason time, with a chance to play a little between Hall and Craig Smith. Cassidy is interested to see how the added weight translates onto the ice.
“It can work both ways. You’ve got to be careful how you put it on. It’s got to be good weight. If you’re just packing it on to have more corner weight, so to speak, it can effect your ability to recover,” said Cassidy. “So those are the things we want to see out of Jack, just being a little stronger on his feet with balance, core work, to be able to absorb some of the contact on what we call chip hits where he’s going through traffic and a guy gets a piece of him, that he can keep his balance, keep going and keep possession. Because Jack has a willingness to go into traffic. He likes to play in here, he likes to have the puck around the net in those dirty areas, so you’ve got to be strong on it if you’re going to be at your best. That’s part of the reason for the conversation. I think he recognized it as well.”
Lineup may take time to jell
With all the turnover – at least five new players in, regulars like Krejci, Sean Kuraly and Kevan Miller out – Cassidy conceded the trial-and-error period of putting the lineup together could take a little longer than usual.
“Probably,” said Cassidy. “I think we have a good idea on most of the lines and how they fit will be determined through training camp and exhibition games. On the back end, there’s some opportunity to move some pieces around. Obviously the goaltending (with newcomer Linus Ullmark and Jeremy Swayman ) is not how we started last year so there is a enough change for sure. But training camp will determine all that. I think every team to a certain extent goes though some level of experimenting in the first 10, 12 15 games. And we’ll be no different this year. Hopefully it squares itself away sooner rather than late because, as you know we like to ry different things as the year goes on when the team’s going well, so hopefully we get to that spot quickly.”