Boston Bruins Media Day Notebook

The Boston Bruins hosted their annual Media Day at TD Garden on Monday, previewing the 2023-24 season that’s set to begin Wednesday night against the Chicago Blackhawks. With an almost-finalized roster after a month of training camp, it’s finally time for regular season action.

A notebook with highlights from Media Day, below:

Much of the offseason talk about the Bruins surrounded the absence of Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci – who would this team be without them? Through training camp, the answer to the question has become clearer as veteran players have stepped up and younger guys have pushed to be non-negotiable assets within the lineup.

“Even though you’re losing Patrice [Bergeron] and David [Krejci], those are tough losses, but that happens in the world of sport,” Bruins President Cam Neely said. “Charlie [Coyle] and Pavel [Zacha], they’ve got to be excited about the opportunities they’re going to get. And then a guy like ‘Matty’ [Poitras] coming in and making tough decisions for us and being a nice surprise.”

The emergence of youngsters like Matthew Poitras, Johnny Beecher and Mason Lohrei has added a spark to what was previously a daunting transition. The trio will look to prove they can handle an NHL caliber schedule if – and likely when for Poitras and Beecher – they make the opening night roster.

“It’s really about what we think we can still accomplish, what we still have to look to do to improve our club,” Neely said. “But it’s really the players that came to camp, it’s what are they going to do to help us improve as well?”

Swayman and the Bruins management settled on a one-year, $3.475 million contract this summer after an arbitration hearing, reuniting the goaltender tandem with Linus Ullmark that dominated last season. While a longer term deal would’ve likely been preferred from Swayman’s camp, Bruins general manager Don Sweeney said the two groups couldn’t find “common ground.”

“Based on the fact that we couldn’t find common ground on a multi-year deal, that’s probably the first indication that [a one-year deal] was going to be the best path. And again, it puts Jeremy right back in a really good situation,” Sweeney said.

Swayman now returns to No. 2 on the goaltending depth chart, but there’s not a big gap between starter and backup for the B’s. During Ullmark’s Vezina Trophy-winning 2022-23 season, Swayman played 37 games and earned a 24-6-4 record while posting a 2.27 goals against average and .920 save percentage.

“We expect him to be a top-flight goaltender and challenge for – despite having a Vezina-winner riding shotgun with him – the way Jeremy is wired, he feels he’s as good if not better and wants to be the go-to guy. Those are good problems to try to sort through,” Sweeney said.

Despite Coyle’s elevated role and responsibility as 2C this season, he’s not trying to change the look of his game. Rather, he wants to make everything a little bit better. Through preseason, Coyle centered a line with Brad Marchand and Jake DeBrusk, proving he could drive play with top wingers while still mixing in his edge.

“I just want to keep playing my game, but I want to get better at it. I want to be solid defensively, that’s first and foremost,” Coyle said. “I want to be more offensive too, but I don’t want to be taking risks – I want to do it the right way. Skate, use my body, use my size; all the tools I have and can use, can use them better.”

Coyle will have a new fan watching him this season – his daughter Lilia was born in August. The first-time dad is focused on being a better hockey player for his team, but also a figure for his newborn to eventually look up to.

“It’s almost added motivation to have a daughter and want to work hard for her. I think it’s going to be a special thing to have for this year,” Coyle said. “I want to be the best father I can for her, but I want to be a good role model. You always want to emphasize hard work and doing that; doing your job, you want to do as best you can.”

With opening night just two days away, Heinen remains uncertain about his future with the Bruins organization. The 28-year-old forward has been playing on a Professional Tryout Agreement, aiming to fill the 13th forward position.

“Danton practiced again today. We’re still weighing our options as relates to potentially signing Danton,” Neely said. “As you know, he’s been here on a PTO but he’s also made the decisions difficult and we’re going to take it right down to the wire when we make our final roster decisions tonight.”

Alex Chiasson, who was the Bruins’ other PTO player, was released on Oct. 1. Heinen outshined his counterpart in early preseason games and has likely earned his keep.

A tight-lipped Don Sweeney confirmed that contract negotiations were still ongoing with DeBrusk – that was all he would comment on the matter.

DeBrusk, 26, is entering the final season of his two-year, $8 million contract and has made his intention to stay in Boston clear after previously requesting a trade in 2021. Coming off a career year, DeBrusk must convince Bruins management that he’s a top six intangible. The one thing Sweeney wants to see? Consistency.

“Jake has matured on and off the ice and gone through some ups and downs associated with that – last year, coming back from two separate injuries,” Sweeney said. “It was important for our hockey club and important for Jake because sometimes you’d see him dip when he came back in those situations and he really didn’t.”

DeBrusk was three shy of 30 goals in the 2022-23 season with 50 points (27 goals, 23 assists), and barring injury this year, is poised to break another personal-best. Now, it’s all about putting all the pieces of his game together every single night.

“Great hockey sense, he has the tools to be an impactful player,” Sweeney said. “It’s always been about consistency with Jake. We all see it, you just expect to see it on an absolute nightly basis and he’s getting closer to that.”

While not official yet, Beecher has all but secured the 4C role. As the 22-year-old waits for confirmation, he’s at peace with the fact that he put it all on the line the past month of training camp. Beecher has stood out with his speed, scoring ability and willingness to go to the dirty areas, and leapfrogged Jesper Boqvist, who was waived by the team on Saturday.

“Just staying true to my game. At the end of the day, they’re looking for a fourth line center who plays physical and plays fast,” Beecher said. “That’s pretty much me to a T and just wanted to come in and put my best foot forward and felt like I did that.”

As the training camp roster shrunk and shrunk over the past week, Beecher has remained mentally tough while finding solid consistency on the ice. Amidst the unknowns, Beecher controlled what was directly in front of him, and it seems to have worked out in his favor.

“Whether it’s getting outside and going for a walk or doing something just to clear my head. Obviously it’s an extremely stressful time,” Beecher said. “I think at the end of the day, it was just things will fall wherever they do and just make sure I gave myself the best chance to make the team.”

The Bruins are officially back in action on Wednesday at TD Garden with a 7:30pm puck drop against Connor Bedard and the Blackhawks. Follow along for full B’s coverage from The Hockey News all season long.