Folks, we've finally made it. NHL Training Camps open around the league this week. All around the league, teams will see players fighting for roster spots.
Nobody may have as much competition as the Boston Bruins, nor as many unknowns. The Bruins went on a splurge on July 1, churning the waters for strong, hard-nosed depth pieces to complement the young skill the Bruins hope break through this year.
Bruins General Manager Don Sweeney said as much about the signings.
“That was by design all summer long.” Sweeney said Tuesday at the Boston Bruins Foundation Golf Outing, “We made a massive change in direction last year at the Deadline, and now we need to course correct. We need to take steps forward and get back to the level, as Marco talked about, the level and standard that we all expect here.”
The question marks don't just extend to the bottom six, where most of the additions on July 1 will fight. The top six is not set, and there's a quiet goalie competition set to take place.
There are three Bruins in particular to watch for throughout camp.
Viktor Arvidsson
Viktor Arvidsson's arrival in Boston could not have been any more low-key than it was. A trade that flew under the radar thanks to the frenzy on July 1.
Arvidsson, 32, joins Boston after having the worst point-producing season since his rookie year. While battling health and constantly juggled lines in Edmonton, Arvidsson posted 15 and 27 points across 67 games.
A former two-time 30-goal scorer, Arvidsson can bring a real scoring punch at his best. Even in a down year, he scored 15 goals. Of every returning Boston Bruin, he scored the fourth-most. Only David Pastrnak, Elias Lindholm, and Morgan Geekie scored more.
There should be no doubt that the addition of Arvidsson could end up being one of the shrewdest moves of the summer. If he's able to score 20–25 goals while receiving consistent top-six minutes, it could drastically alter how the season unfolds.
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Michael DiPietro
The Bruins are set for their first backup goalie competition in a good while. Michael DiPietro, a 2017 third-round pick, was the best goaltender in the AHL with the Providence Bruins last season. The 26-year-old recorded a 26-8-5 record, a 2.05 goals-against average, a .927 save percentage, and four shutouts.
With those sparkling numbers, he won the Aldege "Baz" Bastien Memorial Award as the AHL's top goaltender and was named to the AHL First All-Star Team.
He's ready for the NHL, there's no question about it. The only issue is that both Jeremy Swayman and Joonas Korpisalo are locked into their contracts. Korpisalo, in the third year of a five-year contract originally signed by the Senators, is a candidate to be moved. He has a $3 million cap hit.
The Bruins do not want to carry three goalies this year. While they could, it would adversely affect the roster and the goalies themselves. If DiPietro has a strong camp as expected, they're going to be forced into a trade of either Korpisalo or DiPietro.
Alex Steeves
Alex Steeves, signed during the mad dash of July 1 signings in Boston, will be a major factor in training camp.
A consistently excellent AHL player, the New Hampshire native will be pushing for a roster spot. While much of the focus this summer has been on Fabian Lysell and Matej Blumel, Steeves is in that same category.
What Steeves brings, however, fits just as well in the bottom-six as the top-six. He plays at maximum effort and is willing to sacrifice his body and throw hits. He's spent the last few years in the Toronto Maple Leafs organization and played seven NHL games this past year.
In those games, he scored once and assisted on another, all while throwing 19 hits while playing under 10 minutes a game. He also scored 36 goals and 62 points in 59 games with the AHL's Toronto Marlies, a strikingly similar if not better pace than Blumel's (39-33-72 in 67 games).
He received consistent praise in Toronto; take a look at what colleague David Alter wrote about him in the last 12 months.
Once camps open, do not be surprised if Steeves ends up being one of the biggest surprises of it all.
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