2024-25 Preview: Boston Bruins BOSTON BRUINS 47-20-15, 109 Pts. 2nd Atlantic, 7th Overall 3.21 GF/GP (13th), 2.70 GA/GP (5th), 22.2 PP% (14th), 82.5 PK% (7th) Top scorer: David Pastrnak. 82 GP. 47-63-110, 47 PIM, 12 PPG, 382 Shots, 19:56 TOI/GP 2024-25 BetMGM Stanley Cup Odds: Opening: +2000 Current: +2000 (as of August 22, 2024) Ticket: 5.2%. Handle: 4.1% (as of August 22, 2024) 2023-24 FANTASY RECAP The biggest surprises were the lack of drop-off in Brad Marchand's production and the career seasons from Charlie Coyle and Pavel Zacha in Year 1 of the post-Patrice Bergeron era. David Pastrnak was great, as expected, despite the dip in goals, and the goaltending was still excellent with Linus Ullmark and Jeremy Swayman. The rest of the roster was solid but not good enough to be relevant in fantasy, and nobody but the aforementioned four scored more than 20 goals. It seemed often like they were better than the sum of their parts, which meant offered few fantasy options for the entire season. Other than a handful of players, including their one elite superstar in Pastrnak, the Bruins offered up only streamers. Trent Frederic was good for hits and PIM and the bonus was the occasional goal, and Morgan Geekie was useful for a stretch when he scored and got top-six and PP minutes. David Pastrnak [https://thehockeynews.com/.image/c_fit,h_600,w_600/MjA4ODk5NzE2NDM4NTY2NzY5/usatsi_23193453.jpg] David Pastrnak 2024-25 FANTASY OUTLOOK Despite signing Elias Lindholm, expect more of the same from the Bruins: top heavy with Pastrnak at the top, a smattering of 60-point players and some useful streamers every now and then. There's some room for surprise, including Geekie and two notable rookies in Georgii Merkulov and Fabian Lysell, but it's doubtful they become impactful top-six players right away. The Bruins did not really address the departures of both Jake DeBrusk and James van Riemsdyk, which might lead to some dip in scoring even with the addition of Lindholm. Their goaltending will take a step back without a Jennings-caliber tandem, though I think there's still some hidden value in Joonas Korpisalo (more on him later). As of this writing, Swayman remains unsigned, and if his holdout stretches into the start of the season, the Bruins will be under a lot of pressure. It's a tough division and there's not much room for error, or for any of their key players to miss extended periods of time. The Bruins also play a lot of games on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, which means you might be benching players such as Zacha, Coyle, and Lindholm because better players may be available on those busy nights. With only 20 games on off-days (Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, Sundays), the Bruins don't offer much value, if any, for fantasy managers who want to take advantage of less busy nights. 2024-25 PROJECTED LINEUP (updated Oct. 6, 2024) Even Strength Pavel Zacha - Elias Lindholm - David Pastrnak Brad Marchand - Charlie Coyle - Morgan Geekie Trent Frederic - Matthew Poitras - Justin Brazeau Max Jones - Johnny Beecher - Mark Kastelic Hampus Lindholm - Charlie McAvoy Mason Lohrei - Brandon Carlo Nikita Zadorov - Andrew Peeke Jeremy Swayman - Joonas Korpisalo ex: Cole Koepke, Riley Tufte, Parker Wotherspoon Power Play Marchand - Coyle - Pastrnak - E. Lindholm - McAvoy Zacha - Geekie - Pastrnak - Brazeau - Lohrei SLEEPER: FABIAN LYSELL, RW There is a big gaping hole in the Bruins' top six, and the expectation is that someone will step up. Someone has to if the Bruins are to be a Cup contender. There are a few candidates, but 2021 first-round pick Lysell and Georgii Merkulov, who took the less travelled path as an undrafted Russian prospect playing in the NCAA, are at the top of the list. Merkulov has led their AHL club in scoring over the past two seasons with 120 points in 134 games after turning pro following just one season with Ohio State, while Lysell spent just one season in the WHL before turning pro and also spent the past two seasons in the AHL. Lysell probably has the inside track; his playmaking ability fills a need in a lineup devoid of creative playmaking at even strength and on the power play, while Merkulov's one-dimensional play makes it hard for coaches to trust him and therefore hard to get consistent minutes. Given the potential for a top-six role and seeing little offensive potential in the rest of the B's current lineup, I'd pay attention to see how Lysell fares in training camp. It feels like it's his spot to lose. Lysell's a deep sleeper but he has top-six upside based on usage and he's particularly noteworthy in keeper leagues. SLEEPER NO. 2: JOONAS KORPISALO, G Here's the thing — we're weeks away from training camp and Swayman has not signed. It was an odd move to trade Ullmark to the Sens before inking Swayman, and now Swayman has the leverage because the Bruins won't be Cup contenders without him. That thrusts Korpisalo into the starting job, and being the starter on a better team even after a disastrous season with the Sens means his fantasy value just skyrocketed. Korpisalo is not a bad goalie; the Sens were awful as a whole last season, and when he was on a competent defensive team (Kings), he was actually quite good (.921 SP, 2.13 GAA). If Swayman holds out, Korpisalo becomes an excellent zero-G option who will likely come at a very low cost. When Swayman returns, it won't be tough to dump Korpisalo on the waiver wire. BREAKOUT: MORGAN GEEKIE, C I think Frederic is an underrated player, Matthew Poitras will bounce back from an impressive rookie season cut short by injury, and both Johnny Beecher and Justin Brazeau have the potential to play higher in the lineup, but none will get the same type of opportunities and usage as Geekie. Used as No. 2 center and on the power play for parts of last season, I think there's a chance we see Geekie used in a similar way, though the signing of Lindholm is a definite road block. While I think a breakout season for Geekie — meaning career highs across the board — is plausible, his ceiling is probably 50 points with value added in hits and faceoff wins, making him a borderline roster player in 10-team banger leagues. Matthew Poitras [https://thehockeynews.com/.image/c_fit,h_600,w_600/MjA4ODk5ODMyNDAyNjgzMDQ5/usatsi_22004921.jpg] Matthew Poitras BOUNCE-BACK: MATTHEW POITRAS, C Considering the B's were better than expected and nobody was particularly disappointing, Poitras is the easy pick. He appeared in just 33 games in his rookie season but scored 15 points, an impressive 37-point place for a bottom-six player. He will set career highs this coming season; however, I don't think he'll be relevant in fantasy except for the occasional streaming opportunity. BUST: ELIAS LINDHOLM, C It this a spicy take? I'm not so sure. I've written more at length about Lindholm [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/fantasy/latest-news/elias-lindholm-easy-over-on-60-points] but the general gist is this: he doesn't have a track record of scoring like other No. 1 centers in fantasy and a lot of his production will depend on who he gets to play with. He's not a 30-goal threat unless he gets a little lucky and sees a spike in shooting percentage. While I have him penciled as Pastrnak's center, there are no guarantees he stays there all season. I think Lindholm is in danger of getting drafted too early in most leagues, and it's going to be hard for him to get back to point-per-game status. With Coyle and Zacha, Lindholm's also going to see decreased value in face-off wins. Lindholm won't be a complete bust, and even if he doesn't score a lot of points, the B's will still get lots of value from his two-way play. But from a fantasy standpoint, I just don't see why any fantasy manager should reach for a potential 60-point player in the first 10 rounds, especially one who's ranked so much higher in Yahoo's pre-season rankings than Coyle and Zacha. I'd rather avoid the headache of wondering who might come out on top between the three. The Bruins have three very good No. 2 centers who are only marginally better than one another with Lindholm perhaps having the slightest edge because I expect him to play the most on the power play. GOALIES Refer to what I wrote above about Korpisalo being a sleeper pick. However, if Swayman signs, he once again should rank among the league's best. Without Ullmark, look for Swayman to capture at least 50 starts, though the one worry I have is fatigue. He's just never had a workload quite like this, and there's a ton of pressure with a new contract. At an individual level, I think Swayman's also better than Ullmark, which makes him a far safer bet. Over the past three seasons, Ullmark has saved the third-most goals above average at 5-on-5, according to naturalstattrick.com, but Swayman's close behind at seventh. Swayman was statistically better last season, if only slightly, but Ullmark received far better goal support. Jeremy Swayman vs. Linus Ullmark, 2023-24 [https://thehockeynews.com/.image/c_fit,h_600,w_600/MjA4OTAwODc3NjkwMzQ5NDI1/capture.jpg] Jeremy Swayman vs. Linus Ullmark, 2023-24 JASON’S TOP 5 POINT PROJECTIONS (based on 82 games) David Pastrnak, RW - 49-52-101 Brad Marchand, LW - 25-36-61 Pavel Zacha, C - 22-36-58 Elias Lindholm, C - 22-33-55 Charlie Coyle, C - 20-32-52 YAHOO PRE-SEASON RANKINGS 5. David Pastrnak, RW 28. Jeremy Swayman, G 34. Brad Marchand, LW 82. Charlie McAvoy, D 109. Elias Lindholm, C 188. Pavel Zacha, C 219. Charlie Coyle, C 255. Joonas Korpisalo, G 307. Hampus Lindholm, D 322. Trent Frederic, C/RW 329. Morgan Geekie, C/RW 434. Brandon Carlo, D 449. Nikita Zadorov, D 702. John Beecher, C 731. Matthew Poitras, C 732. Mason Lohrei, D 892. Georgii Merkulov, C 1134. Fabian Lysell, RW Click here to join the new THN Fantasy roundtable to discuss! 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