Poke The Bear with Conor Ryan Ep. 160
What Does John Farinacci Bring & Candidates For the Top Six
Conor Ryan of Boston.com and Evan Marinofsky of New England Hockey Journal discuss the Bruins signing John Farinacci and what he brings to the table. The guys also make a big bet, project the top six and are the Bruins done making moves this offseason?
This episode is sponsored by:
This episode of the Podcast is brought to you by Fanduel Sportsbook, the exclusive wagering partner of the CLNS Media Network. Visit FanDuel.com/BOSTON and start earning BONUS BETS with America’s #1 Sportsbook!
21+ and present in MA. First online real money wager only. $10 Deposit req. Refund issued as non-withdrawable bonus bets that expire in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at fanduel.com/sportsbook. Hope is here. GamblingHelpLineMA.org or call (800)-327-5050 for 24/7 support. Play it smart from the start! GameSenseMA.com or call 1-800-GAM-1234
Conor Ryan
Reporter for Boston.com
Twitter
1:00 - Conor has an amazing night at the Savannah Bananas
5:00 - What does John Farinacci bring to the Bruins?
10:00 - Who are candidates to move into the top six?
12:30 - Conor and Evan make a huge bet
16:00 - James van Riemsdyk vs. Trent Frederic
22:00 - Will the Bruins do anything else this offseason?
What Does John Farinacci Bring & Candidates For the Top Six
Conor Ryan of Boston.com and Evan Marinofsky of New England Hockey Journal discuss the Bruins signing John Farinacci and what he brings to the table. The guys also make a big bet, project the top six and are the Bruins done making moves this offseason?
This episode is sponsored by:
This episode of the Podcast is brought to you by Fanduel Sportsbook, the exclusive wagering partner of the CLNS Media Network. Visit FanDuel.com/BOSTON and start earning BONUS BETS with America’s #1 Sportsbook!
21+ and present in MA. First online real money wager only. $10 Deposit req. Refund issued as non-withdrawable bonus bets that expire in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at fanduel.com/sportsbook. Hope is here. GamblingHelpLineMA.org or call (800)-327-5050 for 24/7 support. Play it smart from the start! GameSenseMA.com or call 1-800-GAM-1234
Conor Ryan
Reporter for Boston.com
1:00 - Conor has an amazing night at the Savannah Bananas
5:00 - What does John Farinacci bring to the Bruins?
10:00 - Who are candidates to move into the top six?
12:30 - Conor and Evan make a huge bet
16:00 - James van Riemsdyk vs. Trent Frederic
22:00 - Will the Bruins do anything else this offseason?
Category
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SportsTranscript
00:00 (upbeat music)
00:02 And welcome into "Poke the Bear" episode 160,
00:12 presented by our good friends over at FanDuel.
00:15 That's Connor Ryan, I'm Evan Marinovsky.
00:17 Connor, what's up?
00:18 - Evan, I'm doing well.
00:20 How you doing?
00:21 - Doing great, doing great.
00:23 And we're fortunate enough.
00:25 First of all, I wanna hear your Savannah Bananas experience
00:28 the other night.
00:29 I'm curious, how was this?
00:31 - You know, I think probably the best way to describe,
00:33 first of all, it was a great time at the park.
00:34 Obviously a bunch of kids there, had fun.
00:36 There was a lot of Fortnite dances,
00:38 a lot of stuff that I didn't get the references,
00:40 which means I feel really old, but kids had a good time.
00:43 The way I would describe it, it's like, you know,
00:47 the Mr. Krabs meme, where he's like looking around
00:49 and everything's scrolling behind him.
00:50 That's kind of how I felt.
00:52 It's like, just a lot, it's a lot going on.
00:54 They introduced him, he got like fog machines flying off.
00:57 You got people doing the Fortnite dances
00:59 or like a big speaker box.
01:00 You got like guy doing a back flip.
01:03 You got a guy on stilts.
01:04 It's a lot going on.
01:05 It's kind of like, not to break everything down into memes,
01:09 but also it's like when Donald Glover walks in
01:11 with the pizza, that's how it is like walking
01:13 into a Bananas game, but entertaining,
01:16 whole bunch of stuff going on.
01:18 I could see the appeal as to why it's like sold out
01:20 everywhere they go.
01:21 It's good.
01:23 It's, you know, a perfect August assignment
01:26 when you got really, you know, you got something to do.
01:28 You see the Banana Show in Brockton,
01:29 went there, got some Cape Cod Cafe pizza afterwards.
01:32 - Ooh. - It's a good day.
01:34 - That's very good.
01:34 That seems like it all worked out.
01:36 It's, I've never been, it's, I didn't realize they did
01:39 kind of their tour, but it seems like kind of
01:40 the perfect thing to take the kids to on a, you know,
01:44 a weeknight or something.
01:45 What Doug Flutie was there, Johnny Damon was there,
01:49 everybody, it's just a lot of things at once.
01:53 I feel for the people who plan that all out,
01:55 it's gotta just be like, just a lot of
01:58 documentary was coming in. - I mean, it's like,
01:59 they also have like a, they have like a two hour time limit.
02:02 So like after two hours, like they,
02:04 like that's the last inning after that.
02:06 So like they don't like, - Oh, wow.
02:07 - their big things pay some play, but it's like,
02:10 man, that itinerary for those two hours was like,
02:13 just extensive, right?
02:14 They had every single thing going on,
02:15 every single like stoppage.
02:17 There's no moment where I think you could be like,
02:19 all right, look at your phone or anything like that.
02:22 There was nothing like that. - I'm gonna go
02:22 to the bathroom, yeah.
02:23 - Yeah, exactly.
02:25 It's just nonstop, nonstop action.
02:27 But it seemed interesting at the very least.
02:31 But some Bruins news has broken.
02:33 I know it's August, but there was still some Bruins news
02:36 that broke earlier this week.
02:37 Bruins signed John Farinacci out of Harvard.
02:40 He was a third round pick from Arizona in 2019,
02:43 couldn't come to an agreement.
02:45 That means he became a free agent.
02:46 It's funny, from talking to a lot of college coaches,
02:49 a lot of them kind of agree that it's almost better
02:52 if you're a college player to not get drafted,
02:54 unless you're a first round pick or a second round pick.
02:57 But sometimes it's better to not be drafted
03:01 because then you kind of get to pick where you go later on.
03:04 Obviously he did get drafted.
03:05 Things just didn't really work out in Arizona.
03:09 He had a few teams on him, but the Bruins,
03:12 obviously he's a Dexter Southfield kid, Harvard kid.
03:16 Of course he's gonna pick the Bruins.
03:18 But it seems like this is more of a fit
03:20 than just kind of taking a flyer
03:21 on just any college free agent.
03:24 - Yeah, no, I mean, you look at his profile
03:27 and he's probably regarded as probably the most sought after
03:30 among like the college free agents.
03:32 You got guys like, you know, Jay O'Brien and Jake Wise
03:34 and a few other players that have some feel,
03:36 but probably in terms of a game that should do well,
03:41 the pros, you know, known as a sturdy two-way centerman
03:46 has potential there.
03:47 It makes plenty of sense for the Bruins
03:49 to target a guy like that,
03:50 especially when you look at just their lack of depth.
03:53 I mean, you sign him, he's probably already
03:55 regarded as one of your top two or three
03:57 probably center prospects in the system, right?
04:00 Along with like Poitras and a few of those other guys.
04:03 And again, I think it's important to like put on the brakes
04:06 as like, as soon as he signs, people are like,
04:07 is he gonna be on the NHL roster?
04:09 I'm like, let's-
04:10 - Give him the seat.
04:11 - Yeah, he's 22.
04:13 You know, he's, you know, an advanced player.
04:15 So, you know, he should be able to hopefully
04:18 make a relatively smooth transition to the NHL.
04:20 Again, every player's timelines differently,
04:22 but if you're the Bruins and you're just looking
04:24 to stock up on your pipeline of talent down the middle,
04:27 targeting a guy like Farinacci makes plenty of sense.
04:29 And who knows, maybe he pops in camp,
04:31 maybe he has a really good few months of AHL action
04:35 and then, you know, carves out a bigger roll up in the team.
04:38 You know, again, it remains to be seen
04:39 where exactly these guys kind of fall in.
04:42 But if you're the Bruins and, you know,
04:44 you don't have a lot of traffic capital,
04:45 you don't really have the means to really restock
04:48 your center prospect kind of pool organically
04:53 through the draft, going this route,
04:55 which they've done time and time again with, you know,
04:57 college free agents, guys whose draft rights expire.
05:01 It's a smart move, right?
05:02 If you're gonna invest or try to outbid or outmove
05:05 other teams to get these young players on the market,
05:08 targeting a guy like Farinacci with his skill set,
05:12 his position, does make plenty of sense.
05:14 - Yeah, to me, this makes a lot of sense
05:16 just given his style of play,
05:18 the two way, I know he had 61 points in 79 games at Harvard.
05:22 And again, I mean, it's sort of, you know,
05:24 it also gives sort of the,
05:27 I know there's not a lot of organizational depth at center,
05:29 but you have a lot of guys, it feels like in the system,
05:32 like a McLaughlin, like a Beecher,
05:35 who could maybe use some competition.
05:38 You know, I know they're sort of competing
05:39 against each other, but like, add Farinacci to the mix
05:43 and suddenly you have some more internal competition,
05:46 which is something that they sort of boast a lot about
05:49 and they like to sort of, they like to have happen.
05:51 Still though, I think it's an indictment on, you know,
05:54 the organizational depth in general that, you know,
05:56 you can sign this guy right out of college
05:58 and he's already your number one or two center prospect
06:01 that's ready to make a jump.
06:02 But again, I think there's value here.
06:04 I don't think this is a, just at any college signing,
06:08 you know, as I said, it's not taking the flyer.
06:09 And I know he mentioned yesterday,
06:12 Patrice Bergeron was sort of his guy
06:15 that he watched a lot of, which is a good sign.
06:17 I think a lot of kids though, from this,
06:19 from that generation watched Patrice Bergeron a lot
06:23 as the center.
06:24 How could you not?
06:26 - I mean, I feel like that's like, you know,
06:27 that's right at the top of terms of like
06:29 having a script to stick to.
06:31 Signing with the Bruins, two-way centerman,
06:35 it's right there, you know.
06:36 - Who was the guy from Pittsburgh that was doing the,
06:40 you know, Bergeron wouldn't even be on the four lines
06:44 for the- - You would know it.
06:45 I thought you would know, Evan.
06:46 You're a Pittsburgh arch nemesis, so.
06:48 - Is it, it's Mark Madden, right?
06:50 That's the name? - Yes.
06:51 - Mark Madden, okay.
06:52 Mark Madden would see like,
06:54 I imagine Mark Madden asking prospects being like,
06:56 "Did you watch Sidney Crosby growing up
06:58 or Patrice Bergeron?"
06:59 If they say Bergeron, he's just like,
07:00 "Bang!"
07:01 Just like, you know, like knocks them out cold.
07:02 - That's like the, what do they used to always do
07:05 for like the Stanley Cup final?
07:07 I think it was like,
07:07 it was maybe it was Hockey Night in Canada.
07:10 It was one of those programs up there,
07:11 but they would have the thing where it would be like
07:13 every player on the roster
07:14 and have like their own like player card like video
07:16 and be like, "Hi, I'm Patrice Bergeron.
07:18 I'm from such and such,
07:19 and my favorite player growing up was XYZ."
07:22 And like forever, like when he got to like 20, like 10,
07:26 around that time, it's like, "All right,
07:28 Joe Sackick, Joe Sackick, Steve Eizerman, Steve Eizerman,
07:30 Steve Eizerman, Steve Eizerman, Joe Sackick."
07:33 I'm sure like now it's probably like,
07:34 again, you would think it would be Bergeron,
07:36 but I know it's definitely gonna be like,
07:37 "Crosby, Crosby, Crosby, Crosby, Crosby, Crosby."
07:41 Well, like, if they still did that now,
07:43 it would be interesting to see
07:44 what all the different kinds of names were.
07:46 But Bergeron, I feel like though is a smart choice
07:48 for a guy like Tarantini in terms of one, where he signed,
07:51 and what his kind of profile is
07:53 if he, you know, succeeds at the next level.
07:55 - It is interesting.
07:56 A lot of the kids I talk to at the prep level or, you know,
07:59 who are getting recruited will be like,
08:00 "Yeah, like I love Kael Mekar."
08:02 And I'm like, "I grew up watching, you know, Victor Hedman."
08:05 And I'm like, "Whoa, like what do you mean?
08:07 That's your, like, really?
08:09 Like, I just, it makes me feel old."
08:10 Soon enough, the kids are gonna be like,
08:11 "I grew up loving McDavid.
08:13 McDavid's starting up."
08:14 Like, "You were born at, what were you born?"
08:16 Like, "What the hell?
08:17 Like, how did that happen?"
08:19 But it makes us feel very old because, you know,
08:21 when we were younger and you'd see Sackhacker,
08:23 Eisner, maybe just be like,
08:24 "Oh, those are older players, you know, whatever."
08:27 But now it's like, we're at that age where it's like,
08:29 "Oh my God, you know, Crosby and Bergeron."
08:31 A lot of kids in this area though were Bergeron.
08:33 I remember, I think it was either Will Smith
08:34 or Ryan Leonard I was talking to.
08:35 And they were like, "Yep, Bergeron's the guy."
08:37 So I think that adds up.
08:40 But yeah, Fairnodge's interesting signing.
08:41 Did I see somewhere he's the nephew of Ted Donato?
08:43 - He is, he's nephew, cousin of Ryan.
08:46 So again, got those ties, you know.
08:49 He's from New Jersey, but he's got a ton of connections
08:54 already to the Bruins, which they love those connections,
08:57 the Bruins, in terms of targeting these guys.
08:59 So made plenty of sense in that regard as well.
09:01 - They do, they do, they do love that.
09:04 So it'll be interesting.
09:04 I mean, again, wouldn't shock me if that's a guy
09:07 who has a very solid season in Providence.
09:09 And as you said, is up in February or March,
09:12 getting a look somewhere in the middle six.
09:14 Nothing wrong with that.
09:17 It's not gonna get a game breaker,
09:18 but maybe it turns into something.
09:20 Nothing wrong with that.
09:21 Speaking of people who could get looks in the top six,
09:24 and we talked a lot about Charlie Coyle
09:27 as a potential number one center,
09:29 Pavel Zaka as a one or two center.
09:31 But other than those two, because again,
09:35 those are the two logical choices,
09:37 but someone could emerge from camp.
09:39 They could think outside the box.
09:40 I know you sort of thought outside the box
09:42 and your roster projection, putting Trent Frederick
09:45 up on that top line with Marshan and Coyle.
09:47 Is there anyone else, including Frederick,
09:50 who you could see kind of moving into that top six
09:52 that we're not really discussing?
09:54 - Yeah, I think one guy that is,
09:57 I think probably the most intriguing player
09:59 that they've added this off season is Morgan Geeky.
10:01 I think he's a guy that probably doesn't project,
10:05 a guy who what, only has hit, what's his career high?
10:07 I think like 29, 30 points in the season,
10:10 but I think you look at his skill set.
10:12 And again, we've talked about it countless times with him
10:14 in terms of his production,
10:16 even though he only played, I think like 68 games last year,
10:18 average under 11 minutes of ice time per game
10:20 just below guys like Foligno and Frederick.
10:23 Like that's really not a lot of reps
10:25 to put up that many points.
10:26 Maybe the Bruins think there's room to grow there.
10:28 And he's, we've also kind of talked about this before,
10:30 like Charlie Coyle may not be a top six center,
10:34 but he put him an entire year with guys
10:36 like Marchand or DeBrusque,
10:40 or if he was with Pasternak or something,
10:42 that elevates their play.
10:44 So if Coyle doesn't mesh on that top line,
10:48 I wouldn't be surprised if you see a situation
10:50 where a guy like Geeky gets a look next to Marchand
10:52 and insert player there, right?
10:54 DeBrusque, what have you.
10:56 I think our buddy Ty Anderson
10:59 kind of mentioned this before of like,
11:00 if Riley Nash can slot in for Bergeron
11:04 and have him be on a line with Marchand and Pasternak
11:07 and that line look great,
11:08 like Morgan DeGee could be that same kind of player.
11:11 You know, is he going to be a guy
11:12 that you put him in the top six
11:14 and he's going to be a 65, 70 point revelation?
11:17 No, but if he's driving play,
11:19 being responsible down both ends of the ice
11:22 and gives you 45-ish points
11:25 for what you're looking for in that role
11:26 of just a guy that can slot in there,
11:28 you'll take it.
11:28 So I mean, he's a guy that-
11:29 - Yes, please.
11:30 - Yeah, he's a guy that I think is due
11:32 to take a step forward regardless of where you put him.
11:34 I think if he's not getting
11:37 that kind of unexpected promotion up to the top six,
11:40 he could be a guy that, you know,
11:43 could slot in on that third line centerman role.
11:45 And then you've got him with guys like Ben Riemsdyk
11:48 or Lauko or maybe a younger player
11:51 like Vesely Markulov
11:52 that really popped during training camp.
11:54 So he's a guy that I think
11:56 wherever you put him in the lineup
11:57 is due to, you know, take another big step forward.
12:00 I think he's a guy who's gonna be
12:01 a pretty solid player for them this year,
12:03 kind of whatever role they have for him.
12:04 - It feels like Geeky is an early favorite for Sixth Man,
12:08 or not Sixth Man, Seventh Player.
12:10 (laughing)
12:11 - It's gonna, I feel like I know who it's gonna be.
12:14 - Who are you thinking?
12:16 - It's gonna be Lushnik.
12:17 - Oh, that would be so fun.
12:19 - It's gonna be Lushnik.
12:20 - You really think so?
12:22 - Yes, yes.
12:23 - Maybe.
12:24 - On this day, we are recording August 18th,
12:26 I will put down, I'll give you,
12:30 what would you like, Evan?
12:31 I will give you a free trip.
12:32 - Oh, I like Kama.
12:35 - Damn it, I was gonna say a free trip to Sully's on me.
12:39 - Oh, okay, okay, I'm for that.
12:41 I'm completely for that.
12:42 So you'll say Luchich, and what do you like?
12:45 You're a Dunks guy, so I'll give you a gift card to Dunks,
12:50 and I'm gonna say Geeky.
12:51 I say Morgan Geeky's the Seventh Player.
12:53 I feel like I'm gonna lose this one, but that's okay.
12:56 - I feel like I asked you,
12:59 you had a clean slit of requesting anything,
13:01 and the one thing you asked for is a Kama gift card.
13:04 - Well, I know, 'cause that's something
13:06 we always joke about.
13:06 - Yes, yes.
13:07 - Oh, maybe you think that an inside joke, you know?
13:09 - Yes.
13:09 - Kama still would be near the top of my list.
13:11 I love Kama, but yeah, Sully's, I'm all for.
13:16 No problems there.
13:17 Get a hell of a lobster roll or a chili dog
13:21 or whatever they got over there.
13:23 Kama, that's an interesting pick for me.
13:27 - I was like, wow, I gave him way too much leeway
13:30 to request anything, and I was like, oh, Kama.
13:32 - I want a free trip to California.
13:37 I want, you know, send me to Australia.
13:39 - It was like when Chara got his,
13:41 I think it was his thousandth game,
13:43 and they gave him the thing,
13:44 one of the gifts was a ticket to anywhere.
13:46 It's like, you wanna go to the fucking moon?
13:48 Like, what is the parameter there?
13:51 - They put him in Elon Musk's thing
13:52 that they took to the moon, you know?
13:54 Like, I wanna be in that.
13:55 - Right, yeah.
13:57 - Yeah, that was a crazy gift they gave him,
13:59 'cause you could really go crazy with that,
14:01 you know, go anywhere.
14:02 - There's gotta be some little terms and conditions there.
14:05 There's gotta be like a little mileage counter on it
14:07 or something like that, who knows?
14:08 - Yeah, a round-the-world trip to everywhere.
14:12 - Yes.
14:12 - But anyways, yeah, Chara could really,
14:18 did you know what he ended up doing with that?
14:19 - Who knows?
14:21 Like, he probably is running,
14:23 he probably ran a marathon somewhere
14:24 or something like that,
14:25 and like, that guy always finds something to do,
14:29 so give him props for that.
14:30 - Yeah, credit to you there.
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15:28 - Uh, you know, it seems like, you know,
15:33 Geeky's a strong one.
15:35 We've talked about Frederick a little bit,
15:37 potentially being up in the top six.
15:39 To me, it feels like the,
15:41 Dabrowski is a lock for the top six.
15:44 Marchand's a lock for the top six.
15:46 Postnok's a lock for the top six.
15:48 Zaka's a lock for the top six.
15:50 Coyle's teetering, but let's say I'll give him that, right?
15:52 On the wings, on the wing,
15:55 it feels like the real question is,
15:58 do you put Frederick in there and try it?
16:00 Or do you go with sort of the old reliable veteran
16:03 in James Van Riemstyke?
16:04 And I think both have,
16:07 there's solid arguments for both
16:08 because Frederick, you put him in there,
16:10 you want to see what he's got, right?
16:11 Give him a 15 game sample size or something.
16:14 That's really you trying something out.
16:16 Van Riemstyke's sort of the safer bet.
16:18 It is, you know, if you put it,
16:21 'cause it changes things, right?
16:22 If you put Frederick in the top six,
16:23 you're putting him next to Coyle.
16:25 If you put James Van Riemstyke in the top six,
16:28 you're most likely keeping Dubruska and Marchand,
16:30 putting them with Coyle,
16:31 and then James Van Riemstyke and Postnok
16:33 with Zaka down the middle.
16:35 Van Riemstyke might be a little more reliable,
16:38 but I am curious to see what you have in Frederick, right?
16:42 Like to me, in most seasons,
16:45 I would say you want the reliable piece.
16:48 You want James Van Riemstyke in there,
16:49 getting you 20, 22, 23 goals.
16:53 You know, 50 something points, whatever,
16:55 you know, reliable guy.
16:57 But this season, I'm really, you want to try things.
17:02 I think you really want to try things.
17:04 And that's why I'm sort of in favor of,
17:06 give Frederick a shot, try it.
17:08 I know you and I have never been super high on him, right?
17:11 Like, but he's what you have.
17:13 It's what you got.
17:14 And he's been good next to Coyle in the past,
17:16 especially last year.
17:17 Give it a shot.
17:19 - Yeah.
17:20 - What do you have to lose?
17:21 - Yeah, I mean, I posted that lineup thing,
17:24 and everyone's like, "If Frederick's in the top line,
17:26 like, we might as well not even watch this season."
17:28 What's like, all right, Debbie Downers.
17:30 - Fair.
17:31 - But I think for Frederick, it's not even like the,
17:35 you know, throwing him into the fire.
17:36 And when you put him with Marshain and Coyle,
17:40 like you've got room to grow there.
17:41 But I think for Frederick, it's all about,
17:43 one, how well he complements Coyle,
17:46 which you need to get,
17:46 if you want to put Coyle and Pencil into that top line spot,
17:49 you need to get him going and playing at a high level.
17:51 Then also it's kind of that domino effect, right?
17:54 Like if you look at just Coyle and Frederick,
17:57 you know, whatever the case would be
17:58 in terms of how they complement each other,
18:00 it works.
18:01 Like I had like the numbers up now,
18:04 last year, 649 minutes of five and five ice time together,
18:07 Coyle and Frederick,
18:08 ruined outscored teams, 35 to 18,
18:10 154 to 116 edge and high danger scoring chances.
18:14 Really good.
18:14 For a third one that also don't forget
18:16 was getting a whole lot of D zone starts.
18:18 Like not like they were kind of the shutdown line,
18:21 essentially, as they were trying to give more,
18:23 easier reps to Coyle and,
18:25 or not Coyle, Bergeron and Crecce.
18:27 So you've got that situation.
18:29 And then Coyle without Frederick last year,
18:32 420 minutes,
18:33 ruins only outscored team 16 to 14,
18:36 and opponents had a 94 to 75 edge
18:38 and high danger scoring chances.
18:39 I don't know what it is,
18:40 but Coyle and Frederick together,
18:43 it just works.
18:44 So that's one thing there,
18:45 if you want to get Coyle going,
18:46 then again, you look at the domino effect of it.
18:49 If that line can be a pain in the ass to play against,
18:52 Marshan, Coyle, Frederick,
18:54 puck possession,
18:55 you're kind of de facto shutdown line in that regard.
18:58 The domino effect now of having
18:59 DeBrusque back at his natural position,
19:02 a left wing with Zaka and Pasternak.
19:04 That's going to be a fast paced line.
19:05 You've got arguably the best,
19:07 you know,
19:07 by the fastest skater on the team,
19:10 probably in DeBrusque there.
19:11 That can only help in terms of one,
19:13 getting them finally pass that 30 goal threshold
19:15 and also getting the most out of,
19:16 you know,
19:17 two other players you want to see thrive
19:20 in Zaka and Pasternak.
19:21 And then by doing that,
19:23 you bump Van Riemshuik down.
19:25 Like Van Riemshuik's a solid player,
19:26 but it's almost like how we viewed,
19:28 you know,
19:28 some players in the past where it's like,
19:29 all right,
19:29 you could be a really good 3C or,
19:32 okay, second line player.
19:33 I think Van Riemshuik's in that regard.
19:35 And also if you've got Zaka and Pasternak
19:37 and you really want to play with pace,
19:39 Van Riemshuik's not really the guy
19:41 that fits in there in that equation.
19:43 So if you put him down with Geeky
19:44 on that third line and get him going there,
19:47 I think it just,
19:49 you know,
19:49 things start falling into place a lot easier
19:52 the way that thing pans out.
19:54 So it's going to fall on Fredrick
19:55 to play at a high level,
19:56 to continue to match and show that last year
19:58 wasn't an aberration in terms of
20:00 both his individual play
20:01 and how he played with Coyle
20:03 and why that match,
20:04 you know,
20:05 how that pairing just worked last year.
20:07 But that's what I think it's,
20:09 you know,
20:09 some of it,
20:10 of course,
20:10 is you want to see what a guy like Fredrick has
20:12 in a future role.
20:12 But I think it's so much more of
20:14 how he complements the engine of that line
20:16 and how much it should benefit
20:17 the rest of the lineup
20:18 in terms of moving Fredrick up to the top,
20:20 top line there.
20:21 - You also create depth.
20:23 Like you sort of create depth
20:24 that wouldn't normally be there, right?
20:26 Like having a reliable score,
20:29 you know,
20:30 however you want to define score,
20:32 20 goals,
20:33 let's say,
20:33 somewhere around there
20:35 on that third line and James Van Riemshuik
20:37 who's a veteran,
20:37 who you can also put on the power play.
20:39 Like just because he's not in the top six,
20:41 doesn't mean he can't be a net front on the power play.
20:43 And you have him next to Giki
20:45 and that sort of will up Giki's production.
20:48 And so you have that,
20:50 like, again,
20:51 we're trying to make something out of not a ton,
20:54 but I do think that
20:56 I am intrigued in that Fredrick idea
20:59 on the top line
21:00 or with Coyle and Marchand.
21:02 However, whether that's the first line
21:04 or the second line,
21:05 because as you said,
21:06 if that Coyle line becomes sort of your,
21:08 you know,
21:09 they have more D zone starts
21:10 and your Zaka line with the Bruskin Poshnok
21:13 has more Ozone starts.
21:14 I mean, we're simplifying it down.
21:17 We're simplifying it down a lot,
21:19 but like you have the baseline of something there.
21:22 Like that's not,
21:22 that that's still a playoff team.
21:25 And then, you know,
21:27 if you want to do JVR,
21:30 Giki and Lauko or McLaughlin
21:34 or Brown or whoever on that third line,
21:37 and then your fourth line,
21:37 you know, you figure that out.
21:39 Like, again, we're making it sound really easy,
21:42 but I do think that there is something there
21:44 with those guys.
21:46 But to me, I feel like it comes down to Van Reemsteyck
21:49 and Fredrick is who you kind of put in that top six,
21:51 at least to start.
21:52 Even if Giki is a great camp,
21:54 I have a tough time believing he's going to immediately,
21:56 they're going to be like,
21:56 "Oh, jump right into the top six."
21:58 Feels like that's a guy who's going to play his way in.
22:00 - Late November, early December,
22:02 something is going wrong.
22:03 That's when you make that kind of switch there.
22:04 - Absolutely.
22:05 So we talked about Faranaci.
22:09 Do you think there's any more roster moves in the pipeline?
22:11 Currently sitting at 429,000 of cap space.
22:13 You don't have a lot of leeway.
22:15 Do you think anything else happens
22:16 before the start of training camp?
22:18 - I don't really think so in terms of, you know,
22:20 maybe another like younger, you know,
22:22 collegiate signing or something like that.
22:24 But in terms of like trades or anything like that,
22:26 I think this market's kind of gridlocked right now anyway.
22:29 Check in in January, February, March,
22:32 obviously when things should probably heat up again,
22:34 but I don't see any other lint home trade
22:37 or anything else like that right now.
22:39 I just think it's, again, the Bruins think
22:41 we're trying to be very active this off season,
22:43 but don't do so much with the cap is right now.
22:46 Like it's, no one's really making that many moves
22:49 in that regard.
22:49 So I think this is kind of a pretty solid framework
22:53 of the roster you're going to see going to camp
22:55 and see how it plays out.
22:56 And we both said it's going to be intriguing,
22:59 interesting, see how it all pans out,
23:01 but time's now to see what kind of the rest
23:03 of this roster's got.
23:04 So we'll see.
23:05 - Yeah, that's really all we can do at this point.
23:08 Connor, what can people look forward to from you
23:11 over at boston.com and the Boston Globe?
23:13 - Yeah, we're going to be covered throughout
23:15 these final weeks of the off season for the Bruins.
23:17 Start looking at, obviously the line of projections,
23:19 we'll look at younger players
23:21 and how they can make a spot on the team
23:24 going into training camp.
23:25 We'll have stuff covered throughout.
23:28 Beyond hockey, we've got Patriots,
23:30 pre-season, into regular season,
23:33 all that good stuff over at boston.com.
23:35 So please follow us over there.
23:37 And if you want to follow me on Twitter,
23:38 you can @ConnorRyan_93.
23:40 - Go do all of that.
23:42 That's Connor Ryan.
23:44 I'm Evan Marinovsky, presented by FanDuel.
23:46 You poke the bear listeners.
23:47 Have a great rest of your week.
23:49 (upbeat music)