Despite an increase in the salary cap numbers in the NHL for the coming season, the Boston Bruins were still bound against making any big moves or splashes, rather they were held back from signing all their potential unrestricted free agents and they will be forced to use more of what they have in their system, citing budget reasons.From the Pool Outlook in June until now, the Bruins lost all of their UFA's to other NHL clubs, Jarome Iginla went to Colorado, Shawn Thornton went to Florida and Chad Johnson went to Long Island, just to name a few, so the team will have somewhat of a different look, from the team that lost to the Montreal Canadiens in the second round of the playoffs.
These budget issues, which will be explored even more below, has also affected the negotiations of two key restricted free agents as well, which may have some serious implications on the team's scoring record and possibly hurt the team's projections for the coming year.
Nevertheless, despite all of these budgetary issues, the Bruins still have the better part of their core still intact, including their pesky young forwards, huge defenders and their number one goalie. The Bruins won't be hurting for wins, but the chances of a President's Trophy defense may be more difficult.
| Forwards | 14/15 Proj | Cap Hit | Defense | 14/15 Proj | Cap Hit | Goaltenders | 14/15 Proj | Cap Hit |
| Patrice Bergeron | 65 | 6.500 | Zdeno Chara | 50 | 6.917 | Tuukka Rask | 80 | 7.000 |
| David Krejci | 60 | 5.250 | Dougie Hamilton | 35 | 0.894 | Niklas Svedberg | 20 | 0.600 |
| Milan Lucic | 55 | 6.000 | Johnny Boychuk | 20 | 3.360 | |||
| Brad Marchand | 55 | 4.500 | Dennis Seidenberg | 15 | 4.000 | |||
| Carl Soderberg | 55 | 1.008 | Matt Bartkowski | 15 | 1.250 | |||
| Loui Eriksson | 45 | 4.267 | Adam McQuaid | 10 | 1.567 | |||
| Chris Kelly | 20 | 3.000 | ||||||
| Gregory Campbell | 20 | 1.600 | ||||||
| Dan Paille | 20 | 1.300 | ||||||
| COUNT | 9 | COUNT | 6 | COUNT | 2 | |||
| SUBTOTAL | 33.425 | SUBTOTAL | 17.988 | SUBTOTAL | 7.600 | |||
| BUYOUTS & OTHER | 4.750 | |||||||
| TOTAL | 63.762 | |||||||
| PLAYERS | 17 | CAP SPACE | 5.238 | |||||
| Alex Khokhlachev | 25 | 0.787 | David Warsofsky | 15 | 0.600 | Jeremy Smith | 10 | 0.550 |
| Ryan Spooner | 15 | 0.760 | Kevan Miller | 5 | 0.800 | |||
| Jordan Caron | 10 | 0.600 | Christopher Breen | 5 | 0.600 | |||
| Justin Florek | 5 | 0.600 | ||||||
| Marc Savard | 0 | 4.007 | ||||||
First Round Picks
The team game has been the biggest reason why the Bruins have been so successful in the NHL in recent memory, but it has also kept a lot of players from being 1st round picks, rather just allowing one player to be up there... their number one goalie. It should be much of the same in the 2015 season, as Tuukka Rask should be back there, assuming he stays healthy. Rask has been solid, playing among elite and is more than worthy of the early selection.
Most Intriguing or Breakout Player
There is a good bunch of players that are clumped together on the projection table above and one that may be considered somewhat of a breakout player would be Carl Soderberg. Soderberg had a pretty good 2014, picking up 48 points in 73 games and now with a regular shift and a full-time job, the 28-year old Swede could finally make a mark among the rest of the scoring Bruins, staying within a few points of the top of the team standings. He may have some work to do to get to the top, but if he can contribute, the team shouldn't be short on scoring this year.Other Pool Worthy Forwards
The core group is still there in Patrice Bergeron, David Krejci, Milan Lucic, Brad Marchand and Loui Eriksson, but beyond that, there is a slight drop-off in scoring projections. These five have remained fairly consistent on a nightly basis, more as a group, than individually. The forwards may not score every night, but they certainly give the Bruins a chance to win every night. As for pool players, they will eventually get the points, but some nights, you will definitely miss out on some individual efforts.
Other Pool Worthy Defense
Much like the forwards, the Bruins are not big on scoring on defense either. There are really only two recommended defensemen to take from Boston, Zdeno Chara and Dougie Hamilton, assuming Torey Krug doesn't sign before the start of the season. Okay, they have three, but at this time, with no deal for Krug, it is only a pair. A good pair, no doubt, but it could be better for us poolies.
Goaltending Situation
Last season, the back-up goalie position was taken up by Chad Johnson, who had found some experience from time to time in North America in the Rangers organization. This year, it looks like the job will fall to Niklas Svedberg, who made his debut in North America last season and will get a stiff test every once and a while, when Rask can't go. He should figure into being a decent back-up, if you're unable to snag two starters.
Team To Pick From Late?
Boston doesn't have a lot of depth assigned to their projected roster, but that won't mean that they will be bad to choose from. Right now, I don't see the Bruins being a good team to pick from late, if you're struggling to make a pick, but they will have to bring some talent up and if you get to see enough of them in training camp before the draft, take notes.
Unsigned Players and Salary Cap
The Bruins don't have much space left, only about $5.2 million remains for six roster spots and two of those spots are destined to be filled by restricted free agents Reilly Smith and Torey Krug, who are both looking for substantial raises from last season. Between the two players, there was 91 points, so there is a good chunk of offense that isn't in their projected roster and it may cost them the remainder of their cap space. The Bruins are likely going to be moving some pieces to get everything to fit still or they might lose one or both to Europe, if neither are going to get paid in North America.Injuries
One injury concern out of the 2014 season was defenseman Dennis Seidenberg, suffering a major knee injury in January. Seidenberg had surgery to repair the major ligaments in his knee and is expected to be good for training camp. His injury last season did hurt his projections this year, so you may want to consider him a bit of a sleeper.
In Buffalo, the Sabres have done a lot of tinkering with their line-up and it doesn't look like losing will be tolerated by the team's new ownership. Yes, the Sabres did not fare well in the 2014 season, but with a number of draft picks, some more money in the coffers and brand new management at the helm, there is a overwhelming feeling that the Sabres may mean business, which raises an eyebrow or two amongst the hockey pool community.
As much as I haven't projected him to have much of a breakout season, centre Cody Hodgson has the most potential to, given that he is a lock for the roster, where a couple of their prospects still have to do all the preseason leg work to get in there. Hodgson returns as the number one centre on the team and he will have a new winger on his line in Matt Moulson, but this is a team that is still lacking in identity and even though the projected roster was filled out a lot faster than previous years with an influx of new money, that didn't translate into better projections from me. I think Hodgson still has the potential, but it may be another year before he busts out.
For how exciting the Calgary Flames appeared to be in the 2014 season, their numbers were not a good reflection of their better times against their signs of rebuilding. Still though, the Flames did show some flashes of what could be to come and with a new season, it will bring some fresh faces and some eager hopefuls to crack the line-up and gain that valuable NHL experience.
All eyes in Calgary are going to be focused on Gaudreau this year, as his Hobey Baker Award winning seasons has raised his expectations through the roof. The 21-year old diminutive winger possesses some top end speed, a few lovely dangles and a pretty decent hockey sense, all of which he'll need to compete for his spot in the NHL. Those extra couple years in the NCAA system should be nothing but a blessing, but I think asking about his size may still be a worth while question, at least for the first season, then you may want to re-evaluate those thoughts.
The Carolina Hurricanes haven't made the playoffs since the 2009 season and the team goes into the 2015 season with no extra hope of doing so again. Rather, the Hurricanes may have themselves a solid lottery shot at Connor McDavid, thanks to what could be a winning drought of a season.
Goaltending in Carolina will be a hot-button topic, especially under the guise of trying not to throw the season, although they very well might. Since Cam Ward is on his way out of town, by way of the trade rumours, Anton Khudobin becomes an intriguing player on the hockey pool list. Will Khudobin end up being the number one guy in Carolina? Right now, I can't see anyone making a play for Ward on the trade market, there just doesn't seem to be a spot for him anywhere, until an injury rears its ugly head. That makes Khudobin's role so much more interesting, whether or not he is platooned or even takes over as number one. Do you gamble on him earlier than most other back-ups? The answer may be yes.
The Chicago Blackhawks are top-heavy and the team needs a little bit of cap management before we can really be confident in what they are going to get going into this season.
How does the most dynamic team get more intriguing, you ask? Well, the answer is simple. Add some more natural talent.