Cassidy: Grzelcyk to mirror departed Krug
Charlestown native steps into bigger role
Ever since Matt Grzelcyk was promoted to the NHL for good in November 2017, there has been an undercurrent of sentiment throughout a certain sector of Bruin fandom that the Charlestown native would one day replace Torey Krug.
It didn’t matter that the two players had considerable differences, many saw the similar size — or lack thereof — in the two players and figured Grzelcyk would easily slip into Krug’s role.
Well, now we’ll see if that theory holds up.
Camp is only two days old, but Grzelcyk has already taken Krug’s old spot on the second defense pairing with Brandon Carlo and it’s expected that he’ll get the first crack at playing up high in Krug’s former slot on the first power-play unit.
As for Grzelcyk’s pairing with Carlo, coach Bruce Cassidy said that things could easily change, but that it would be the least disruptive of any possible partner for Carlo, who’ll see a good chunk of 5on-5 and penalty kill time.
“If you’re going to compare him to anyone on our team over the years, it’s probably Torey Krug,” said Cassidy after Tuesday’s Day Two workouts. “The element for what he brings for Brandon hasn’t changed a ton in terms of he’ll help Brandon transition pucks. Brandon’s a bigger body that’s grown into more of a shutdown guy that can take care of the front of the net, he gets a little more physical every year and complements that type of player. We don’t think there should be much of a dropoff there in terms of how the pair functions. Obviously, Grizz has got a way to go to equal Torey’s numbers in the league, but he’s going to get more of an opportunity to do that. That was the thinking. We know Grizz can play with Charlie (McAvoy), it’s an easy switch. We know he can play with Kevan Miller. He did a great job with Grizz when Grizz first got into the league, teaching him the nuances of the game and being a big brother, that defensive presence for him. We know we have that in our back pocket if we have to make a switch. But right now for Brandon’s sake, we like that pair.”
Both Krug and Grzelcyk are undersized at 5-foot-9, but there are differences. Krug was a natural offensive player, especially on the power-play, as soon as he was brought up from Providence in 2013. But getting his defensive zone game up to a top-four standard was a long climb. A bit more stout than the slim Grzelcyk, Krug plays with a chip on his shoulder. For the most part, it’s worked out for him. But sometimes he bit off more than he could chew physically and it took him years to learn when to pick his battles.
Grzelcyk has never been under those illusions. Using a good stick and smarts to move the puck from danger areas, he could be a more effective defender in those evenstrength situations, of which he’s seen more if he sticks with Carlo. Now we’ll find out if he can step up to a top-four role.
He’s hoping his professional relationship with Carlo will be as fruitful as it was for Krug.
“Brandon’s a great player,” said Grzelcyk. “As we’ve gotten to know the past couple of years, he skates so well for how big he is and he makes it a lot easier when you’re playing with him to close plays and quickly get going the other way. And when we’re stuck in-zone, he’s one of the best defenders, 5-on-5, and on the (penalty kill). I think he takes a lot of pressure off you being his partner. He takes a lot of pride in closing plays off himself and that will allow me to grab pucks hopefully and get transition the other way, which is what we want to do. We want to play fast and he
does that so well. It’s been a joy the last couple of years to get to play with him here and there but especially the last few days to get some chemistry with him.”
The departures of both Krug and Zdeno Chara present an opportunity for players like Grzelcyk to continue grow their game.
“Obviously we lost Z and Torey, some big shoes to fill. I think for myself personally, I just want to be more assertive and show that I’m capable of handling more minutes and more responsibility that comes my way,” said Grzelcyk. “I just tried to work hard this offseason to get bigger, faster, stronger, like always, but hopefully get used to playing more minutes and hopefully take care of my conditioning that way. We’ll see how it plays out, but I’m excited to get going.”…
Thursday and Friday should be big days in this abbreviated camp. Cassidy said the team will scrimmage on those days and, in lieu of exhibition games, they’ll serve as key evaluating tools. While the left defense is up in the air, there’s also a lot of competition at the bottom six left wing.
Nick Ritchie has been Charlie Coyle’s left wing in the first two days but the fourth line has had a couple of different looks. On Monday Anders Bjork skated with Sean Kuraly and Chris Wagner then, with Brad Marchand skating in the early session, Bjork was moved to Patrice Bergeron’s line, giving Trent Frederic a chance to skate on the projected fourth line.
The strapping, scrapping Frederic brings an element for which
the B’s have been searching.
“We’re going to give Freddy an opportunity if he creates it for himself. And to this point, we’re only two days in, but he looks better, more comfortable than he has in the past,” said Cassidy. “Some of that is hanging on to the puck, some of that’s being a pro for two years and being up for the playoffs. And he’s shooting the puck a ton right now. His shot is obviously improved over the summer or last year that we didn’t see as much. Or he’s just creating more space to get it off. He’s going to have to do that in the games as well. If he can, I think he’s going to finish some plays and we could use that element.”
Karson Kuhlman, Oskar Steen and Anton Blidh have been deemed “unfit to participate,” said Cassidy. Kuhlman got to Boston and finished quarantine in time for camp but ran into a “testing situation.” He said Steen could be ready to practice today while Blidh, who was supposed to compete at left wing, is a little farther off.
Marchand, working his way back from hernia surgery, continues to look like his old self. After one day in the red non-contact jersey, he took part in the two full morning sessions wearing a regular black jersey and participating fully, including in a 5-on-5 drill. Provided he suffers no setbacks, then it certainly seems possible he’ll be in the lineup in the opener in New Jersey next week.
Cassidy said David Pastrnak could be ready by early February, a touch ahead of schedule.