Where will Bruins’ SCORING Come From | Poke the Bear

Where will Bruins’ SCORING Come From | Poke the Bear

Poke the Bear is brought to you by Prize Pix. And welcome into Poke the Bear, episode 350, presented by Prize Pix. Go use that promo code CLNS to get $50 back when you play just $5 and are presented by CLS Media. Make sure to go subscribe to Brewins Ringside on YouTube. Lots of great content, interviews, podcasts, press conferences throughout the year, some live streams time from uh from time to time. And if you don’t like looking at us, if you’re like, “Ah, these guys and not my kind of guys.” And you just want to listen and you love our voices, well, you can go subscribe wherever you get your podcasts from. Spotify, Apple Podcast, Podbean, wherever you like. Uh, and then also there’s a lot of other great content at CLNS, Patriots, Press Pass, Celtics All Access, Pats are fully in training camp. Connor, you’re there. So CLS is there as well. And then Celtics just never seems to stop. I’m Evan Marinowski. That is Connor Ryan. Connor, what’s up? Evan, I’m doing well. How you doing? Doing great. Doing great. It’s the dog days. Dog days of summer. It’s early August. You are a big August is the worst month of the year guy. Or one of the worst. Maybe not the worst, but one of the worst. Overrated. I’m with you. Very overrated month. Very, very I was talking about this with uh one of my friends. He’s like, I love August. It’s so great. You know, it’s like the last month. And I’m like, that’s why I don’t like it. It’s the last month of summer. It’s like you get the back to school commercials. I don’t even go to school anymore and those back to school commercials hurt when I see like the YouTube ads for the Gap or whatever or just like on TV. Yeah. It just kills. It’s like oh I get that like PTSD from being a kid again. And I don’t I don’t love it. Yeah. And even now like I think for us for what we do and how messed up our schedules are, we like get excited for fall. I already think fall is the best season anyway. Like I’m I’m all for sweater weather, all that stuff. Going trick-or-treating at 32, you know, all the all the things that we us people do. Yeah, absolutely. Love the fall. But like I’m also excited, you know, you get into football season’s in full swing. Obviously hockeyy’s back, all that stuff. Now when you get to August, you’re like, let’s just let’s jump ahead. Let’s skip the cut scene and get into like the nitty-gritty, right? And I almost feel like right now you’re just kind of mocking the days down. And listen, I’ll take the good weather. I’ll take all that. But it’s almost like you you already gotten all summerred out, right? And so now you’re ready to move on. Now we’re just kind of talking about nothing. We’re talking I think we’re talking about Canopy Lake this whole episode, right? The whole episode, start to finish. Start to finish. Well, it’s like when you start seeing ESPN tweet the clips or the highlights of like the Little League World Series. It’s like like Yeah, that’s the time. Give me college football. Yeah, give me Yeah, give me college game day. All due respect to those kids and good for them. Uh it is funny watching, you know, some of the highlights, but it’s like that’s the time of year we’re in. That’s the time of year I’m with it. I think I would I like spring a little bit more. And I only say that because for New England Hockey Journal, spring is like the one time in my schedule where it’s not crazy busy. Like April, May, early June, pretty quiet. So I don’t hate that. And you have like playoffs for NBA and NHL. Baseball’s starting up. I always say like that 60°ree day in like February or March is just like that’s peak. I love it. So I’m with you. It’s either spring or fall. Winter’s too cold, summer is scorching hot and August has nothing going on. So yeah, I’m with you on that one. But we still have some topics to get to today. Some interesting sort of look aheads to the season. And you brought this question up to me, Connor, and I think it’s an interesting one. You know, we we harp on this coming Bruins uh team quite a bit that they’re going to be meh, that their offense is going to be boring and all these different things. And you brought this question up. Who scores 20 goals on this Bruins team? Who are the 20 goal or more getters? Who do you I mean, I think there’s one who we expect to hit that and that person is Tanner Jano. Morgan Dio. Yes, you know, duh. Obvious pick for 20 plus goals. Uh, no, it’s David Poshnock. I mean, that’s like not a question. I don’t think that’s debatable at all. Uh, but after Posterno, who do you have? Uh, it’s kind of tough, right? In terms of like guys that are locks, right? Because I think there’s a lot of guys who are in that fringe like 15 to 25 goals, but there’s How many of these guys are you like comfortably penciling in, right? because you’ve got like Morgan Geeki and I do think that as much as you look at the shooting percentage I still think like another full year with David Pos another year as a featured player on the power play like is he going to be a 30 goal scorer I’m not sure but like I think he can score 25 goals like pretty consistently if he’s in that especially on that line with Posternok I’m not too surprised about that but after that it’s a lot of guys who could do it but also like don’t doesn’t feel like this team has like five or six guys who are going to score like 18 goals and you know maybe you don’t need I was looking through the roster Connor and I was like I had the same reaction of like I don’t know if I’m going to say 20 but like 17 maybe like which which again like you don’t need like five or six guys that are 70 point players or you don’t need five 30 goal scorers or anything like that if you’re able to distribute the the scoring output pretty evenly or just have you know David Pos with like 58 goals or something like that and the rest kind of falls into place But beyond geeky, right? Like I don’t really know who’s that next guy up that I think you can comfortably put in that spot. Like I even think like Elias Lindom could have a really really good year, but like maybe he’s got like let’s say that like Elias Lindom has a 60 point season. Doesn’t mean he’s going to be like a 30 and 30 guy. Could be like 18 goals and you know something like that. Victor Robertson you would like to think where he’s got five 20 goal seasons that he’s someone you could look at but also look at who he’s playing with. That feels like the meanest thing I’ve ever said about Casey Middlestad, but like there’s just not that just ruined Casey Middle. It’s so sad. But like I I think you look at that line, there’s a lot that you can like about, you know, Zaka, Middlestat, and Ardson, but there’s it’s not a guarantee, right? Same like Zaka. Zaka is a guy who’s had what almost three 50 point seasons. He came up just short this past year where he was kind of banged up a little bit, but he could be a 20 goal guy. It’s just there’s a lot that you can look at with this group and you could say like well maybe like you know Victor Averson could be a 25 goal guy like Zaka could if he has more of a shot first mentality and who knows maybe like we’re Casey Middlestat I don’t he’s going to be a 20 goal player but if he’s you know now that he doesn’t have Vinnie Lati and Cole Keepy also very mean that I said that about them. I’m just ripping the entire team taking it today. But I I think you do look at um the fact that he has a little bit of a stronger supporting cast this year on that line. Maybe you can unlock more, but there’s not a lot of guys you can look at. You know, this isn’t like the 22 23 Bruins where you’re like, hell, like Taylor Hall could have 20 goals on the third line, right? It’s not going to be that situation. You don’t have the guys that you look at that um you can expect to have that baseline level of production. It’s kind of like how the Bruins are this entire year of how we’re mapping it out. Like they could be good, but uh you’re kind of reaching in terms of like going right now in early August to be like we’re going to get this this this from this group. Like I just don’t think you have that clarity at this stage of the offseason. You don’t. And I was even looking like looking at their roster of who are candidates who could get 20 goals. And to me it’s the six guys in the projected top six. Post Geeky, Zaka, Arbitson, Elias Lynman, Casey Middlestad. Middlestat surprisingly has never had 20 goals in a season before. So never hit it. Uh doesn’t mean he’s not going to hit it this year. But to me, I look at like Middlestat and uh Lindholm down the middle as guys who probably will serve more as distributors. Yeah. And as you said with Lindholm, like he could have 60 points and not hit 20 goals. It’s just a lot of assists. And that’s fine. Like just take it. 16 goals and like 46 assists is like a great year, right? Impeccable math. Um, I don’t even know what that number is. But I don’t know what it is yet. I thought you were trying to get it to 60. Then I was doing the math in my head. No, I just threw those numbers up, but I’m like, that sounds like it’s over. Okay, I’m I don’t think that hit 60, but maybe it hits it’s over 60, I think. Anyway, we can’t do this is not a math. Yeah, please pull up the calculator. Yeah. Um, but again, like even Lindholm on the first line with Geeky and Post. Geeky could should hit over 20 goals. I’m I’m with you. Like somewhere in that 25 range. 985. I did the math wrong. You don’t even know how to enter the number into the calculator. Yes, 62. It was 62 points. Perfect. Okay, that’s perfect. 62 points for Lizome, 16 goals, and 46 assists. We’ll we’ll lock that in. That hit 62. So, yeah, we really suck at math. Anyway, we’re terrific. But my point my point, this is like when we had the Stefan Nosen was writing for the Islanders. That was a great moment. Poor poor guy. Um but uh down the middle I mean I think on that first line like if Geek is going to get you 25 goals and Posh’s going to get you hopefully north of 40. Well is probably more of a distributor. Is he hitting 20 goals? Like I think he’s hitting 20 goals if you’re a really good team. I don’t think you’re a really good team though. So I think it’s more in that like I don’t know 17 to 19 goal range. Like maybe hits 20, maybe not. Um, and then on that second line, like if it’s going to be Zaka, Middlestat, and Arvidson, like I could see one of Zaka or Arvinson hitting 20 goals. I don’t know if I see both. And I think if they put Arbitson on that power play and a shot first uh role, and he’s a shot first guy in general. I would take Arvinson over Zaka for 20 goals, but Zaka’s done it before. I just don’t think you’re going to have mult like I don’t think you’re have a ton of guys getting 20 goals. Like I Poshak and Geeki should be your two fairly certain locks and then maybe Arvdson maybe Zaka like if things go really well Lindtom could be but I think you’re looking at like three maybe four at you’re not buying you’re not buying to the Mate Blue Mel hype. Well, I want to talk about him later for a certain roster spot, but maybe like there are people who have mentioned him for that and I I need to see more. Like I haven’t watched him enough. There’s just so much uncertainty of like not even the the personnel of what like let’s say that third line’s going to be because you could map out 50 different combinations of who could make up that grouping, but every single one of them doesn’t have I don’t think players that are a lock, right? I don’t think uh Tanner Jano is going to be a 20 goal guy. Uh I don’t think even if Matt Potra, who we’re going to talk about in a little bit, is going to be a 20 goal guy. He’s another like kind of distributor anyway. But whether it’s like Lysel, Blue, any one of these guys, uh Steve, someone like that, uh you’d have to be really uh reaching or really drinking the Kool-Aid to if we do our bullet predictions in September being like, “Yeah, I think Matte Lumel is going to be check Craig Smith.” got a nice 21 goal season from the guy. Like I don’t think that’s going to happen. That’s a big jump. That’d be a big jump from and yes, he’s producing a lot in the AHL, but that does not exactly equate to you’re going to be a 20 goal scorer in the NHL. And so that’s why I think when you look at this, I agree there is a there is uh uncertainty. Different things could happen. I just don’t see enough happening where it’s like, oh, they’re a playoff team. Like the offense is so good up front that they’re cruising. And look, they’ll have their strong parts of the season. They’ll have nice stretches and they’ll have stretches where, you know, Victor Arbertson has five goals in eight games or something like that and he’s cooking. But to be like, oh yeah, you know, you’re going to get so much production out of these guys that you’re going to be third in the Atlantic or second in the Atlantic, I just don’t see happening. Um, and look, you hope that those guys can all be consistent enough production wise. Your power play should be better. That’ll equate to more goals. Um, and if that, you know, if this top six is the way it is and they kind of keep it together, then chemistry can be formed, all those different things. I also think you go the other direction, too. Like, you know, we’ve talked a lot about Elias Lindholm, you know, oh, he can be the guy at the end of last season and into Worlds and how good he was, but what if he isn’t? Morgan Geeki, what if last year was an outlier? Like, what if he is just going to revert to being a 15 goal scorer and he doesn’t work with Post in year two and teams have enough film to kind of shut him down? All those different things. I’m not saying that’s going to happen, but like that’s sort of the one end of the spectrum with this group. And then there’s the other end. And I I think it’s going to be somewhere in the middle and it’s going to be somewhere that’s like three guys hit 20 goals and that’s nice, but I don’t think it’s going to be anything, you know, off the charts. Yeah. I think you’re asking for a lot of it’s other guys that if we go to the end of the year and you’ve got like five guys and it’s one guy on the third line who you didn’t expect and then like two of like Zaka and Arvdson if he’s still here if the Bruins are like contending then that’s the whole thing if that’s the case then you’re probably in the playoffs and I don’t know if that’s a lock nor do I think you can say right now if that’s going to be the case like there’s just you know we’re at this stage of the offseason just talking about what could happen or anything like that but there’s just so much unknown with this team that until you get to the actual season, I couldn’t put a proper gauge on what we’re expecting other than a team that if they are good are I think going to win a lot of two-1 games. Like if the defense rebounds and the goalending and the power play has a little bit of an uptick, that’s probably enough to maybe switch some of your fortunes a little bit. But I can’t see all of a sudden there’s a I there’s a sleeping giant in this offense like that they’re just waiting to unlock or anything like that. I think that even if this team does take a step forward, that is going to be an ongoing work in progress in terms of adding offensive talent and skill to this group. I mean, you even look at like Tanner Jano, everybody references back to that 21-22 season with Nashville where he had 24 goals and 41 points in 81 games and it was like, “Oh my god, this young guy is going to be taking over the Tom Wilson. The next Yeah. Next Tom Wilson, the next great power forward.” Like, he’s not even in a role I I don’t think where he could even put up those stats, right? like and it just based off of projections. Now, if he moves into the top six and plays well enough, then maybe yeah, but like if he’s your fourth line left wing, which is what we kind of expect him to be, maybe third line left wing, he’s not going to be in positions to put up those kinds of numbers. So, like I don’t think he’s a sleeping giant either, unless he has a phenomenal training camp and he’s like a different player and he’s somehow in your top six start the year, which isn’t insane. I just I don’t really see that happening. And that’s the thing where if he’s in a bottom six role, I don’t think you’re expecting that kind of production from him. If you get it, great. But I think that’s a hard thing to expect. So I agree with you. I don’t think I don’t think there’s a sleeping giant. There’s no Taylor Hall on the third line. There’s no young guy coming up that you’re like, “Oh, he’s going to he’s going to take over now. He’s got 20.” Big thing, Connor, is like maybe if James Higgins comes up in March, he gets 20 goals by April. Just like Great. League by storm. 20 goals in like 10 games. And it’s like, oh, forgot about James Higgins. So, there we go. I’m getting ahead of that. James Hagens 20 goals next year. Book it. Book it. In a 10 game stretch, two goals. Dan Dan Losis this year. Buy the hype. That’s right. Buy in, baby. I mean, it is like I think in future years with the prospects that they do have, be it someone like Zeers, Los Malis, Hagens, um, and I think Hagens at the NHL level is probably going to be more of a distributor, but you’re going to have younger guys pop in future years. I think that’s something to be encouraged about this year. I don’t know. I don’t know. You know what something I do know about Connor? What’s that? Prize Picks. Our friends over at Prize Picks. It’s the best place to turn sports knowledge into cash. 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Guys like Trevor Story, Alex Bregman, Roman Anthony go down up pretty much the entire lineup. Jiren Durant has been cooking recently. So, go do that. I love the runs, hits, RBI. I also think there’s good value finds. Like when someone has five hits and they’ve been hot, like that’s a good one to take more on. So download the app today and use code CLS to get $50 instantly after you play your first $5 lineup. That’s code CLNS to get $50 instantly after you play your first $5 lineup. Prize picks run your game. Start running your game right on over to prize pick. Um, someone you alluded to there when talking about 20 goals and and we talked about young guys. Matt Potra, we talked about him a little bit this off seasonason in terms of someone who I just I don’t know where where he’s going to play. I don’t know what to expect. Um, and I think that’s sort of the big question. What are the expectations for a guy like him? You have Frasier Mitten. You brought in a lot of bottom six talent in free agency. You have future young guys coming up too. Where’s Matt Potra fit in this? Yeah, it’s a fascinating question because he’s it’s almost like he’s like a microcosm of what this team is, right? Where it’s like I look at the depth chart and you try to like just map out or project where guys are going to slot in, who’s going to play with who, what they’re trying to get out of this grouping and it’s like where does Matt Potra kind of fit in the equation? Because let’s say like the Bruins really blew things up and like we’re starting from scratch or like we’re really leaning to the youth youth movement and you wanted to say that like hey like we saw some stuff we like down in Providence like hey let’s put him in a top six spot with you know Zaka and uh Victor Robertson like if you didn’t have middle stat that’s going to be a guy you put in there and like there’s no guarantee it’s going to work. There’s no guarantee he’s going to be a 50point player in that spot, but at least you can kind of figure out what you have in that type of player and whether he can, you know, end up being a legitimate middle six player. Now you’re in a spot where it’s like, all right, well, he could be like your third line center, but who like going to be his linemates that are going to get the most out of what you want with that type of player, right? It’s almost like, you know, when we have done line of projections, we’ve put in like Fraser Minton as a guy that probably might be like the favorite for that third line center spot. Not because he’s the better player than Potra or anything like that, but he feels like one, he’s probably more pro ready right now, and also like he’s not necessarily a guy as a third line center that you’re like, “Oh, Fraser Mitten is a guy we know is going to be a 20 goal, 30 assist guy.” Like probably not, right? But like you look at his skill set and what he does well and his versatility, you can see why he could be a really dependable uh 3C for the long haul. And it’s not like he’s got to have to, you know, find chemistry with guys that, you know, that third line’s going to be an offensive cheat code or anything like that. So whereas Matt Potra it’s like all right I feel like if you want to maximize his potential you know and put him in a spot to succeed you probably need to put him with shot first good you know good skating offensive type of players to really kind of see what you have in that type of player if you have Matt Potra who has a good training camp but then like his uh he opens the year against Washington on October 8th and he’s got like Tanner Jano to his left and insert you know unproven right wing most likely to was right. Okay. Like maybe that can work, but I almost feel like at that point, wouldn’t you rather go with a guy like Minton who probably just is better suited for what that role can kind of be? So, it it’s tough, right? Because I don’t think like the the shine or the appeal has worn off on Matt Pchure after having, you know, this is still a guy who’s what, just turned 21 a couple months ago. Yeah. But but where exactly he does fit into the lineup uh is interesting and maybe it just kind of comes into picture off of how he does during training camp and how that changes things. But you know it’s not like a guy like Minton where you can see where he plays and what his skill set is and be like that’s a third line guy. Maybe Potra is a 3C but the supporting cast around him isn’t really conducive to I think playing to his strengths in that spot. I agree. I I don’t think it is either. And this is naive of me to say and I don’t expect this to happen, but what if it goes the other way? What if Matt Potra has a really good training camp? Like really good and looks good and he looks like the guy two years ago when he showed up at training camp they had to keep. And what if he’s in the top six? Like what if he’s ends up being your second line center? I’m not saying that’s going to happen. I’m just saying like what if cuz you mentioned like needing a shot first guy. What if he’s good enough to put between Zaka and Victor Arbertson and Middle stat’s your 3C or something like that? And I and then you get into the whole like middle stat is he a bottom six center? Do you want him with Tanner Jano or Acimon or Carali? Like you get into that, but like there is that other end of it where like what if this is kind of a retooling team and maybe Sturm is different with younger players and Podra does find his way onto that second line. I don’t think that’s going to happen. That’s not like I don’t think that’s the most um likely thing to happen, but it could. It could. I mean, I don’t love if that happens. Bruins would love if that happened. I don’t know if a first year head coach is doing that right out of camp and putting Potra above established NHL vets, but that could be the spot cuz you’re right, like I don’t see Frzier Mitten bumping into that top six. I don’t think he’s that type of player. And then you get into like, you know, does Potchra want to play the wing? Like would Potra end up being a third line rightwing? I don’t think that’s ideal. And you know, maybe he beats out Mitten. Maybe he’s way better than Mitten in camp and Mitten’s your fourth line center. I don’t know. But that’s that’s sort of the thing with Potra is there are a million different possibilities. Does he go back to Providence? Like that’s another end where it’s like, do do we want him scratched and being on the third or fourth line or do we want him playing all the time as the number one center in Providence? And like that’s another option. So I think the realistic expectation is he’s somewhere on that third line. Um, but Mitten sort of makes that more difficult and as I said, like maybe Mitten’s your fourth line center instead because that’s kind of where he projects as a bottom six guy. Um, I don’t know. And that’s why I think like when Court London was on Bruins beat, he was like, “Use Potra as a trade chip. Go out and get, you know, a good right shot defenseman or something like that.” And I’m not ready to give up on Potra yet, though. But I understand the sentiment where it’s like, where’s he fit? Not to mention, you have a ton of other young guys coming up in the next couple years. And I don’t know, I don’t know how to like the sky seems a little bit t, you know, the sky seems a little bit more the limit for them. Um maybe because we just don’t know what they are quite yet. So yeah, I don’t that’s why it’s confusing. It’s so tough to kind of like gauge just what he is, right? Right. And I feel like every time you talk about it, right, it to your point, Evan, it’s not like we’re like out on the guy or being like, “No, well, he didn’t take a big step forward, so like I think this guy’s cooked.” Like no, like this is a guy who exceeded expectations uh two years ago, right, that no one was really expecting, and then like before he got hurt, was like a pretty productive player, like was making plays happened in October and November. and hits a wall as most people expected. Got banged up and then coming off of major sold shoulder surgery this past year like was kind of that bridge gap kind of year for him where he wasn’t really really able to get things right played well down in Providence. So like are are you making any sweeping declarations off off of a player like that who has shown that he can make plays at the NHL level has shown that he’s accelerated his timeline? it. I think the biggest issue with him isn’t like is this guy worth investing in or anything like that is I think right now it’s where do you best put him to succeed and right now I’m like I don’t know where exactly the chips fall there to put him in that spot where you know he can take off if you want to say that he’s going to I’ll play Casey Middlestat and be our second line center that is a great result for the Bruins right where if they can look at him as being a legit middle six player and you got James Hagens coming in you’re going to have a pretty undersized uh top six if those are your guys. Have fun going Flyers, but that is still uh something that you will take in terms of him being on the spot. But it almost feels like uh much like how he was two years ago. it’s going to initially fall on just Potra himself to prove himself and really kind of change the narrative or or force the Broomman’s hands in terms of where he’s going to best fit because if he’s just kind of as advertised as to what we’re all expecting then he’s going to be in kind of that no man’s land limbo of the third line where you don’t really know what to expect. If he wants to take a big step forward and challenge a guy like Middlestat or Zako, whoever the consensus 2C is going to be, then things get interesting, but it’s gonna fall on him himself to do that during the next couple of months. Yeah. And it’s, and you made a good point about this, he is just 21. He’s still very young. Like, this is not He’s been around. It feels like he’s been around a while, but this is not like the end all be all for Matt Potra. I do think it is interesting though in terms of you have younger guys coming up too, so like where is he slotting in? you have bottom six guys signed fairly long term. Um where’s he fit? And I think that’s something that we’re not going to have we don’t have the answer to right now obviously but I think throughout camp it’ll become a little bit more clear um as time goes along. Speaking of come uh speaking of going through camp make sure to subscribe to Bruins ringside on YouTube. Turn those notifications on. Uh like the videos. Um it’s uh we have a lot coming. Poke the Bear, Pucks with Hags, Bruins Beat, live streams, interviews, all those different things. Um, coming over the next month, two months, press conferences throughout the year. Um, and then if you don’t like that, if you’re not like into us watching us, you can subscribe wherever you get your podcast just to listen, just to listen to us. Apple Podcast, Spotify, Podbean. Uh, and then obviously a lot of other great stuff, too. Patriots press pass, Celtics All Access. We mentioned the other day on Brewers Beat. Uh, Jungle Roar by Mike Petriia with the Bengals. If you’re a big Cincinnati Bengals fan, go subscribe over there. Tag is having himself a great time in his banana outfits. So, um, go do all tor tormenting tormenting Jamar Chase. Jamar Chase. I just love how I asked question. Jamar Chase is laughing. It’s like I got Wait, no. Yeah, I’ve got to ask. Um, so you can make sure to go do that over there. Um, third line, Fabian Lel, you like him for that right-wing spot? Uh, again, it’s tough, right? in terms of you like kind of what he showed at the end of this past year. It’s just it’s so crowded as to I don’t think there’s any consensus favorite right now. Like I did uh while I was away up at Canopy Lake like a projected lineup of where guys were going to fit in as you were going down the Yankee the Boston cannonball. Yes, absolutely. Um it it was awful. The Boston Tea Party the water I was typing the Yankee cannonball. It’s the Yankee cannonball, right? The Boston Tea Party. Yeah. So, I was going through my lineup and then I realized like my phone wasn’t waterproof. Went down, flooded, took out five rows of people waiting at the splash zone, but also destroyed my phone. So, it took me a while to get the lineup ready. I digress. But when you look at that third line spot on the wing, you’ve got five, six, seven options, but like who is the consensus favorite there? I went with like Matte Blume Mel because I feel like he’s got the numbers down in the AHL. He’s got a shot first mentality and kind of could fit into that spot. But maybe it’s Fabian Lysel who they gave an extended run last year. Wasn’t perfect, but felt like he was playing his best hockey down the stretch. I mean, he set up that Heninov goal where he just put on the the uh the afterburners, made a play kind of he had like a play like when you have NHL be a pro and you max out the speed so you can just skate past everyone and then you just whip you whip around the net and just throw the puck in front and there’s some guy trailing who’s going to score. Like that’s more or less what he does and you’ve seen it before with like the skill set that he has. Um, and if that’s a guy that he clicks and does take a big step forward, we mentioned like that third line of like Jano and Minton or even Potra, if you have a highly skilled wing like Lysel who takes a step forward and be and becomes a 1520 goal guy, that changes the whole complexion of the that part of your roster. It’s just the same thing like I believe it when I see it, right? And I think like the Bruins want to see what he can do to build off of last year. Like he finally got that first extended opportunity. And after some growing pains, he did play really strong down the end of the year. But is it a guarantee? I wouldn’t say so, right? I need to see it more over an extended stretch. I need to see it during training camp where last year we were talking about this in August and September being like, “This is lifestyles time. Like, let’s see what he can do.” And then he was not good. like he was had a really poor training camp. So, and you know, you look at to your point, Evan, of like how many guys they have coming out through the system. There’s only so many kicks at the can that Lysel is going to have here where if he doesn’t make this team out of out of camp, other guys going to leaprog him pretty soon. So, it’s going to be a key year for him. But, as much as I like the skill set, I don’t think it’s like a lock that he’s going to be the first guy up there. You’d hope that’s the case. Much like I’m sure the Bruins are hoping that Potra pushes other guys and makes a name for himself. But again, much like how we’re hoping that Averton can score 25 and all these guys can do well. Feel like you’re projecting more hope than actually looking at reality for right now at least as for what a guy likeel can do this upcoming year. Yeah, it’s not guaranteed. I think the only thing we can guarantee is that that third line’s going to change quite a bit. Um that third line rightwinger is not going to be the same opening night as it will be in November, December. like it’s going to change quite a bit whether that player boosts up in the lineup and they have to play, you know, they deserve more minutes or they get demoted, sent to level 9, sent to Providence. And Lysel is another young one. Like I was looking at Blumel’s 25. Lel is still like 22, so he’s still young. Like that’s the other thing, right? Like he could pop one of these years or he could be a guy that’s really skilled that just can’t really stick in the NHL. That happens quite a bit. So I agree with you. I think if if Lysel can be a guy who gives you 15 to 20 goals, you are cooking. You are happy. He might end up just in your top six. Um but I don’t know, Blue Ml’s there, too. Steves is there as well. Um does Potra get a look on the wing. There’s a lot of questions there. Um and it’s good. It’s a crowded room. And I think what we’ve seen so far from Lysel early in his career is that, you know, with competition, it hasn’t worked out as great getting him up into the NHL. And even last year it felt like, oh, you know, we’re leaving a spot open and he didn’t really seize it. So, it’s going to be what can he do this year to grab that opportunity and run with it. Um, and I know there are some people who are already out on him. I still think it’s a little early. Um, he doesn’t have a lot of trade value. So, people who are like, just trade him, like yeah, what are you getting? Like, be realistic. So, the the the more valuable thing is give him some runway. See what he can do. see if he can grab hold of it in training camp and what he can do in the um preseason games and go from there. Like I just I we’re not going to know who the third line rightwing is right now. And I can’t confidently sit here and be like it’s going to be Fabian Lel because I I don’t have confidence in saying yes or no to that or to anyone in that spot. Yeah. So we’ll see. It’s It’s funny. Most years it’s like the top six you’re like, “Oh, who’s going to get in there?” Yeah. Like we have a pretty good idea like there’s a base understanding of that top six. It’s the bottom six that it’s like that like who who’s gonna be in there? Who’s right gonna be in what spot? Um Connor, what can the people look forward to from you over at the globe and Boston.com? Yeah, you can read my stuff over at the globe and boss.com. We’ll have you covered every step of the way this Bruins off seasonason going into the 202526 season. Uh we’ll have you covered every step of the way. Whether it’s looking at uh roster battles, camp storylines, Marco Sturman, how he does his first year, all that stuff we’ll have in the coming weeks going into the new season. So please subscribe again over at Boston Globe and uh please read my stuff over at boston.com. And if you want to follow me on Twitter x, whatever you call it these days, you can at Connor Ryan_93. Go do all that. That’s Conor Ryan. I’m Evan Marinowski. Poke the bear listeners. Have a great rest. Have your week. [Music]

In this episode of Poke The Bear, Conor and Evan discuss who will score 20+ goals for the Bruins, Matt Poitras’ potential, and whether or not Fabian Lysell will earn a spot on the Opening Night lineup. 

0:00 ⏰EPISODE TIMELINE⏰
1:08 August is overrated!
3:51 Who scores 20 goals on this team?
16:17 PrizePicks
17:56 Where does Matt Poitras fit into this team?
26:51 Subscribe to CLNS Media’s channels on YouTube!
27:51 Who should be the third line RW?
33:18 Thanks for watching!

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