WILMINGTON, Mass. – Perhaps the only silver lining with the injuries to Zdeno Chara and Dennis Seidenberg has been the chance to get a look at all of the young candidates for open D-men spots with the Boston Bruins.
Young players like Joe Morrow, Colin Miller and Zach Trotman have played big minutes, and in all situations. Tommy Cross might not be with the team this late into camp if those other big bodies were healthy, but instead he's been able to really show off his game. Even a veteran like Torey Krug is logging penalty kill minutes in a scenario that rarely played out in season’s past for the Black and Gold. So while a healthy Seidenberg and Chara would seem prerequisites for the Bruins having a nice rebound season, the extra reps and situational play for the young D guns has also been a good thing.
But it’s also been a positive in camp to see young veterans like Krug and Adam McQuaid taking the lead, and showing a largely inexperienced crew what it means to be a member of the Bruins, and aiding in the learning on the ice.
“I guess the torch gets passed along, right? You know [the veteran guys] were in those shoes a few years back and now it’s an opportunity for them to kind of help those young guys out like they were helped by veterans,” said Claude Julien. “You know they feel comfortable enough they feel experienced to be able to do that, and they should, you know. [Adam McQuaid] has been with us now for at least I don’t know five years.
“Torey [Krug] has been with us now for you know I think it’s his third full year. So these are all things that eventually your experience has to kick in. When you’re missing guys like Seids [Dennis Seidenberg] and Zee [Zdeno Chara], you have got to pick up that slack, and help the young kids out. At the end of the day it’s a team game. As well as everybody around you does, the better it is for you. We have to think about it as a group and not as individuals saying, ‘Well you know I’ll take care of myself and you know his problem is his own.’ I think we have some guys here that are willing to help the guy next to him to make him better because it’s going to make us all better at the end.”
For a guy like McQuaid it’s been rewarding to help guide guys who are walking in his shows from five or six years ago, and also exciting to see the talent that’s on the cusp of breaking for Boston’s back end.
“We use the same term all the time: it's opportunity for everybody. I think guys have been put in positions to show their strengths, and show what they can do. For the most part guys have done that,” said McQuaid. “We talked about the depth we had coming into camp, and I think we’ve seen that. Trotman and Morrow have played like vets here in the preseason, and even Colin Miller has stepped right in and fit right in, shown he belongs. It’s been fun to watch those guys, and it will be fun to see them improve.”
The B's are also able to use those extra available minutes to try the younger players in certain scenarios that they may otherwise not get much exposure to.
"In these preseason games it ultimately doesn't matter what happens. But we're able to get used to different situations," said Krug. "There are times during the season where I'm going to find myself killing penalties, or playing 5-on-5 late in a game. So to get used to that in the preseason rather than in Game 45 when the points really matter, it's definitely important."
The opportunities to take on bigger roles in the preseason should be nothing but a positive once the regular season begins, but don’t be fooled: McQuaid, Krug and the rest of the young D-men know what difference-makers they have in Seidenberg and Chara once they return to full health.
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