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08.04.10 / 1:43 pm / The Bear
By Michael Ryan - Staff Writer
 Tyler Seguin participates in development camp drills (Photo courtesy of Hockey Independent). On paper, the new era in Boston hockey has finally been issued in.
Bruins’ no. 2 draft selection Tyler Seguin officially signed a three-year deal with the team on Tuesday. The 18-year-old Ontario native will make upwards of $900,000 per year. With performance bonuses, he could earn $3.75 million each season.
The signing should come as a dose of excitement for Boston fans, as Seguin looks to be an impact center on the first or second line for years to come. He was a breath of fresh air at the development camp this summer, and the deal should help him be comfortable moving forward.
Of course, in hockey the logistics of an entry-level contract are much less complicated then say football, where rookie contracts can skyrocket into the multi millions even though a player has never set foot on the field. Take St. Louis Rams rookie Sam Bradford, who was recently inked to a deal worth $78 million with $50 million guaranteed. Although that contract was over six years instead of three, each individual year will still see Bradford earning almost 4 times the amount of Seguin (provided Seguin earns his bonuses).
Even the best in the hockey business start out with the basic rookie contract, though, and Seguin is obviously just happy to be signed and will now prepare to compete for a Stanley Cup. Boston showed a lot of respect in the deal, matching Edmonton’s contract with Taylor Hall basically dollar for dollar, sending Seguin the message that he is just as talented as his draft partner.
Now he will just have to prove it on the ice.
07.18.10 / 9:59 pm / The Bear
By Nicholas Vitukevich - Staff Writer
 Jordan Caron puts on a team jersey at the 2009 NHL Entry Draft (Photo courtesy of AP). Jordan Caron is a player that can make a major impact on the Bruins within the next few seasons.
Although it looks like he will stay in Providence to continue to grow for this upcoming season, it is not out of question to think of him as one of the B’s top prospects. Caron was drafted by the Boston Bruins 25th overall in the 2009 Entry Draft.
The 19-year-old forward played five seasons in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League and during the 2009-2010 season he registered 17 goals and 33 points while only playing 20 games. Caron is a goal-scoring winger with size, measuring up to 6’0 and 200 lbs. He excels at driving to the uncomfortable areas on the ice and getting to the net with the puck.
According to the NHL Central Scouting’s final ranking of North American skaters of the 2009 draft, Caron is the best draft-eligible forward playing in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.
Caron has grown to become a discipline team player, and during the 2009-2010 season he registered a +/- of +25.
Though Caron has the talent and drive to be a top goal scorer, he is a two-way player and takes pride in playing every dimension of the ice much like that of the Bruins’ Patrice Bergeron. NHL Central Scoutings’ Chris Bordeleau stresses that Caron’s work ethic and defensive ability will earn him an NHL spot.
“He’s been consistent and a hard worker. He’s not a flashy-type guy but a very consistent and dependable player. Right now I would say he would be between a third-line and second-line guy. We figure that’s where he’s going to be, that type of player. He’s very aware of defensive responsibilities and handles them very well,” said Bordeleau
A weakness with Caron is he does not know how to pace himself and has been injury prone. Not a year has gone by during his Junior career where he didn’t get placed on the disabled list.
Caron is ranked within the top five of the Bruins’ current prospects, just behind Joe Colborne, Brad Marchand, Yuri Alexandrov and Zach Hamill.
In March, Boston signed Caron to a three-year entry-level contract, it is likely that the team will let him grow in the minors for a year, and with a productive season, the chances of him being on the B’s roster in 2011 is extremely likely.
07.06.10 / 4:38 pm / The Bear
By Michael Ryan - Staff Writer
 In four years with the Bruins, Zdeno Chara has missed just 11 games (Photo courtesy of Getty Images). In an offseason that has seen the Bruins systematically take care of every aspect of their defensive core, it’s finally time to give their captain some love.
That’s why GM Peter Chiarelli is undergoing preliminary talks on a contract extension with veteran Zdeno Chara. Although the discussions are early, Boston definitely wants to get things done sooner rather than later, what with Chara entering the final year of his lucrative contract.
As of now, the 33-year-old Slovakian is slated to make 7.5 million in 2010-2011.
I consider this to be a fantastic move toward cementing a team icon into the black-and-gold for possibly the rest of his career. However, the Chara negotiations should put an interesting spin on the rumors that journeymen like Marc Savard and Tim Thomas will be shipped out. A potential extension won’t look too fulfilling for Boston’s towering defenseman should either Savvy or Thomas get sent elsewhere. Remember, those were the two big names who signed extensions last offseason. It just wouldn’t send the message that the B’s are committed to major contracts.
Of course, Chara has already churned through one major Boston contract, which started back in 2006, so that should give him confidence that he is Chiarelli’s man moving forward. However, the Boston front office doesn’t want to set the precedent that they get rid of old, used goods, because that won’t bode well toward hanging on to the most dominant defenseman in the game.
One other cause for concern: how long of a deal would Boston want to sign Chara to given his decreased offensive output last year. Sure, he was a beast on both the penalty kill and keeping scorers away from Tuukka, but his 7 goals was the worst total he has produced since 2000.
The question that sits for the B’s is whether the veteran is showing signs of slowing up, or was his output just a product of a tough offseason season for all the Bruins.
The good news is that Chara has stayed courageously healthy throughout his tenure here, and that is saying something after watching star upon star go down last season.
Another note: 24-year-old Patrice Bergeron is also having early talks with the team. He has spent his entire career with the B’s since being drafted in 2003. His contract will also be up at the end of next season, and it would serve Boston well to take care of these two guys before that period even arrives.
07.02.10 / 3:54 pm / The Bear
By Nicholas Vitukevich - Staff Writer
At the beginning of last season, Sports Illustrated picked the Boston Bruins to make it to the Stanley Cup Finals, and that may be the case again with the offseason moves and acquisitions that have occurred. That is only if General Manager Peter Chiarelli does not dismantle a potential league-leading team that is currently intact.
 Marc Savard signed a hefty seven-year deal last offseason that proved he wants to be in Boston for the rest of his career. Two of the Bruins key players: goalie Tim Thomas, and center Marc Savard have been the discussion of numerous trade rumors and many Bruins and NHL analysts believe that neither will be with the team at the start of the regular season, which would be a major mistake on the part of Chiarelli.
With the drafting of center Tyler Seguin, the B’s are cluttered down the middle. Seguin will make an impact next year, but to say that he is ready to replace Savard in his first year in the NHL would be unrealistic and irresponsible of Chiarelli. It would make more sense to let Seguin get his feet wet his first year or two in the NHL on a wing position.
Savard is good for 70 points in a bad season, and if he’s healthy, it is unrealistic to think that Seguin will do that in his first year. Plus, Savard signed a “Bruins Friendly” contract just this past year that would keep him in Boston for the next seven years at just over 4 million a season. By Savard signing this contract it shows that he is committed to bringing a cup back to Boston in his remaining time here. If Chiarelli does trade him, he will likely not get a major player back, since the only two teams Savard will wave his no trade clause to is Toronto and Ottawa, and Toronto reportedly has no interest in the first line center according to CSNNE.com.
The newly acquired Horton is also a dangerous combination when being paired with Savard on the top line and if he does stay at center it’s not unrealistic to say that Horton could have 35 goals next season, if healthy.
 Top draft pick Tyler Seguin has front line center potential, but Chiarelli would be better off developing him on the wing and hanging on to Savard The Bruins last top pick was Joe Thornton back in 1997, first overall, and in his first season Thornton had a total of 3 goals and 7 points through 55 games. Who’s to say that the same won’t happen to Seguin? For a team that was at the bottom of the league all year in scoring, it would not be smart to trade away their top offensive player. By getting Seguin in the draft the Bruins took two steps forward next season in the offensive category; if they trade away Savard, they’ll take four steps back.
Tim Thomas is another Bruin that shouldn’t immediately be traded away. Tuukka Rask had a good season last year and showed the league that he is ready to be the no. one goaltender, but one bad week in the NHL could erase all that and Tim Thomas could re-emerge as the starter for the B’s.
Thomas does have 5 million in salary, which may be a bit hefty in the capped league, but it would be smarter for Chiarelli to keep Thomas. Rask is young, and still needs to put together a string of seasons like last year to show he’s ready to handle a heavy load of games.
It would be smart to keep Rask around 55 games next season to keep him fresh for the long haul. And if the B’s need a goalie that can play 25-30 games and have a high chance of winning it would be best to keep Thomas for those games where he could win them 20-something games out of 30. Good goalies in the NHL are a scarcity so by keeping Rask fresh as well as on his toes instead of rushed, Boston will be better off.
 Despite his hefty salary, Tim Thomas can serve as a reliable backup for the Bruins and can step up to a starter's role at a moments notice (Photo courtesy of AP). A prime example of a rushed goalie is Canadiens netminder Carey Price, who won 24 games his rookie year with a .920 save percentage and was being named the future of the Montreal franchise after that season. But since then, he has not performed as well as he did his first season, with just a .902 save percentage in his sophomore year and only winning 13 games last season.
Charelli may argue that he wants to trade these two players in order to clear cap room, but most teams will send him back role players equal to the same cap space, and much less in value and quality. Unless Charelli can guarantee that he’s going to use that 9 million in cap space to acquire a major player in free agency such as a Ilya Kovalchuck, then it would be best to keep both players, at least for next season.
06.26.10 / 12:13 pm / The Bear
By Michael Ryan - Staff Writer
 Taylor Hall (l.) and Tyler Seguin pose with their new sweaters and caps at the 2010 Entry Draft last night in Los Angeles (Photo courtesy of NHL.com). Like you haven’t already heard at this point Boston fans, Tyler Seguin is coming to Boston.
Following Edmonton’s first overall selection of Taylor Hall last night at the NHL Draft in Los Angeles, the Bruins quickly swooped in on the consensus no. 2 pick in Seguin. Seguin is a playmaking center who played in the Ontario Hockey League last season. Once considered to be a top ten choice for the draft, his breakout 2008-2009 campaign vaulted him to the position of league MVP and the obvious choice for Boston.
The selection ends a period of several months of top selection chess, where the media tried to speculate what order these guys would go in. Taylor Hall did have some passion for the city of Boston and for the franchise, but in the end, it was Edmonton who swooped in on him. He will stay in Canada and try to revitalize a failing team and drive them back toward contention.
Meanwhile, Beantown gets what is obviously a future first line guy, and one who can play with Marc Savard and other top Boston players to revamp the team’s sputtering offense. That is, of course, if Savvy doesn’t get sent out the door, which has been one of the many rumors circulating around the club in the past few days.
I have to say, it felt good watching Seguin toss on the black-and-gold sweater and cap last night at the Staples Center. It felt like a breath of fresh air after a year where Boston was begging for its savior and nobody ever came to the rescue (despite cameo heroic appearances by Miroslav Satan and Mark Recchi). Now I honestly feel like this could be the guy to revitalize this club.
The Bruins do not have a recent history of trying to pull big punches in the trading/free agent market. Much of their success has come from the development of their young guns and their marquee draft selections.
For example, the once vaunted front line of Joe Thornton, Sergei Samsonov, and Glen Murray were all former B’s selections. Phil Kessel also came early in the 2006 draft, and Patrice Bergeron also started his career in the Bruins’ system. I am fully confident that Seguin is next, and that his time is very soon to take the reigns of this team.
Whether hometown favorites like Tim Thomas and Savard are gone in the coming days and weeks won’t matter for this kid. He will make everyone around him better, and his jersey will soon be circulating on Causeway.
Click here for all of the selections from last night’s first round. The rest of the rounds will take place today.
06.24.10 / 1:43 pm / The Bear
By Michael Ryan - Staff Writer
06.24.10 / 1:12 pm / The Bear
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06.24.10 / 12:47 pm / The Bear
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06.23.10 / 8:25 pm / The Bear
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05.17.10 / 5:56 pm / The Bear
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