Is Marco Sturm the right choice for Bruins head coach? | Pucks With Haggs

Is Marco Sturm the right choice for Bruins head coach? | Pucks With Haggs

[Music] Welcome to another edition of the Pucks withh podcast. A proud member of the CLNS media network. Uh this show uh for those of you listening to this episode of the podcast podcast, we ask that you subscribe to the podcast, like and leave a review. And for those watching the show on CLNS and enjoying all this hockey talk, go ahead and hit that like button and subscribe to the Bruins Rinkside YouTube channel where you can find our show and a lot of other great Bruins content from fellow Bruins talkers like Connor Ryan and Evan Marinowski. There’s also the CLNS Media Network and Patriots Press Pass YouTube channels as well. Also, please make sure to turn on your notifications so you know the instant a new Pucks with Hags podcast video drops on the interwebs. I believe this is the 193rd episode of the Pucks with Hags podcast. Thank you as always for listening, for interacting, for following us, for liking and commenting and doing all that good stuff. I’m your host Joe Hagerty. You can find my work at joehagerty.substack.com. Subscribe and get yourself a premium membership. Get all of my NHL writing sent straight directly to your inbox. I also write columns three times a week for the Boston Sports Journal. So go to bostonportsjournal.com and check that out as well. Uh with me today, I have longtime friend and colleague Mick Collagio. Mick, please tell everybody where they can find your work, my friend. Thanks, Joe. Uh, Rink Raprap. I linked to my blog, Rink Raprap, on X and via Facebook. And, um, let’s see what else. I’ve actually been diverting into some tennis writing lately. Um, well, I’m waiting for the other shoe to drop. That’s uh I often tell people when I say, “What’s your favorite sport?” I say, “Tennis.” Hockeyy’s my life. So, ain’t that the truth. I love it. Um, but check out Mick’s stuff. Uh, tennis, hockey, whatever Mick is writing about. You should always, uh, pay close attention to what he’s writing and and, uh, enjoy, uh, the history that comes with, uh, Mick writing about the Bruins, having been, uh, a fan before he was a media member and having covered and seen so much of the Bruins history. Uh, I love reading Mick’s stuff and listening to him talk as he’s going to do on this episode of the Pucks with Hags podcast. Um, Mick, let’s get into it. a couple of things uh to jump on uh right off the top here and I think the most obvious one is the uh coaching search. Um I I the what I from what I can gather having talked to people it sounds like they’re in a second round of interviews and they’ve kind of reached that sort of finalist stage uh after having interviewed I think it was like 15 or so people uh initially uh really extensive search uh like Don Sweeny said it was going to be um they were going to talk to a lot of different people cast a wide net um you know see see what everybody had to say get and you know you and I have talked about this before I think it’s an unique unique time to also get opinions from people, get honest appraisals from people of what they see about your team and how they view your players in your team. Get those outside perspectives from other hockey people that you don’t always get. Um so, uh now that uh it’s gotten to that point, uh the names that I had heard and Kevin Weekes actually tweeted this out yesterday. Um our buddy Kevin Weekes, longtime goalie in the NHL on ESPN, NHL Network, all that good stuff. He said per sources Jay Woodcraft, Mitch Love, and Marco Sturm are among the favorites as potential hires as head coach for the Bruins, the Penguins, and the Seattle Kraken. Uh probably not necessarily in that order. Um but interesting uh that you have these particular names out there. Um, as uh from what I could gather, I think these were the three finalists for the Bruins job or the three most serious candidates uh for the Bruins job. Um, the one name I had heard from sources, Mick was Mitch Love, uh, assistant coach with Washington. Um, was a head coach in the Calgary organization in the AHL. had a lot of success, has got a defensive reputation, uh, which is something the Bruins definitely want to get back to basics with, uh, which is a good thing and and a feather in his cap. And by that, we don’t mean he gets defensive when the media asks questions. That’s right. I don’t think I’ve ever met Mitch Love before, so I have no idea what kind of temperament he’s going to have with us, but um, at least he’s had NHL or AHL head coaching experience. And I I think you know a lot of people early on had mentioned Misha Donskovv the assistant with the Dallas Stars as a potential candidate. I remember Steve Conroy saying something about him like way early in the process. Um but I think the one thing that was a was a drawback with him or a con was uh he’s never been a head coach at a at a major level uh at any point. He’s been an assistant in a lot of these places and I don’t think you can put a guy like that that’s never been had a head job and never been a head coach uh into the head coaching spot of the original six Boston Bruins with the media following with all the responsibilities with the star players with all the different stuff that you’re going to have to manage and be the you know where the buck stops um if you’re the head coach I I think the NHL is not the right place to try that out for the first time. So, um, with that, uh, particular candidate or potential candidate set to the side because it doesn’t even look like you got an interview, um, because he’s still, uh, going with the Dallas Stars, um, in the playoffs at this point. And, and Don Sweeney said they’re not waiting around for any other candidates for the playoffs to be over. Uh, sounds like Woodcraft, Love, and Sturm are are, you know, probably the finalists. And I I will say this, Woodcraftoft obviously has the past head coaching experience with the Oilers. Um he was the predecessor to Chris Knobblock who’s there now and has had a lot of success. Uh so he has coached a talent level like Conor McDavid, Leon Dryidle. He’s coached in a pretty big, you know, Canadian market that has a a fervent following. There’s a lot of things that he has going for him and I think he’s a quality hockey person and a good head coach. But I got to tell you, the more I thought about it, and I I thought this from the very beginning, Mick, Marco Sturm to me makes a lot of sense, and he’s got the experience having been a head coach in the AHL in the Los Angeles Kings organization. He’s been an assistant um with the Kings at the NHL level. I believe he’s coached Germany in international um situations at some at some points as well. Right. So, but beyond that, he played with Adam Mcuade, who is the director of player personnel or player development with the Boston Bruins. He played with Trent Whitfield, who was one of the coaches down in in Providence with the Providence Bruins. He played with Patrice Berseron. He was on the line with Patrice Berseron, who is still prominent around the organization. He played with Zadoara who is you know a consultant and some kind of special assistant to the general manager with Don Sweeney working in the front office hanging around with the Bruins toward the end. Don Yeah. And Don Sweeney and Cam Neely um have were both were around when Marco Sturm was here. He scored iconic goals for the Boston Bruins. He was a part of the Joe Thornton trade. He has a lot of um little chapters in Boston Bruins history. And I think one of the most important things for the Boston Bruins, for Cam Neely, for Don Sweeney, is to bring somebody in A that knows the territory and the landscape, b understands the importance of wearing the crest and, you know, getting back to the identity of this team and playing with pride and all of that different stuff and has had has the experience to be able to come in and do the job. You know, like I go back to what I said a while ago, like Jim Montgomery was kind of an outsider hire, and that was really the first outsider hire that Don Sweeney uh engaged in as a head coach. And I don’t think it worked out particularly well at the end of the day for them um on a couple of different levels. And I think Marco Sturm would be going back towards familiarity and somebody that they know and believe can do the job and also understands what he’s getting himself into understands the organization, all the people that are here and has made a name for himself in this organization and is going to bring a level of cache coming back here as well. Uh, and there will be great lines of communication at all levels, I think, if he’s the coach because he knows so many of the people that are already in the organization. Marco Stern makes a ton of sense to me and and I think when you really start to think about it a little bit and you start to add it all up and think about what would make the most sense and what you think the Bruins prefer, I think he might be the guy. Like I I really think that Marco Sturm is going to have a very strong candidacy and it might be his job to lose based on his track record and based on his history with the organization. Like I think this is a hire that a lot of people are going to like and it’s going to be a popular one especially with the fans and I think that’s something to consider as well along with he’s hungry and he wants an NHL job and I think he would be eager to take it as well rather than have some of the reservations that other head coaching candidates particularly ones that have past NHL head coaching experience maybe uh weren’t eager to jump into. I’m having a bit of an 11th hour suspicion that you’re on to something here. And part of the reason on my end is I’ll often hear from our friend uh colleague Haiko Aldorp uh from Germany uh when there’s a Bruins Germany connection. Yep. He’s been awfully quiet. Y and the s the s the the haiko silence is deafening right now. Um, I’m not I don’t want to go to the extent that I suspect that he knows something that nobody else knows, but I have a feeling that he knows how close this could be. and and uh if there’s going to be a guy who’s outside the uh the network of Canadian rights holders uh who break this news I’m looking at him if it’s ter Oh yeah, that would be interesting if if that uh ends up happening. I I He’s a a great a person I always enjoy bumping into when he’s at the garden. covering NHL uh stuff and I’ve se I bump into him at Pure Hockey too because his son is a year older than Finn and plays hockey and I think plays in Welssley. Uh so he’s like the next town over. So I I see him at the hockey shop getting like skates and equipment and stuff all the time. So he’s a great hockey guy, great hockey family. I would love for that to happen. He’s obviously very invested in in all the German uh players in the NHL and coaches and everything else. So uh that would be cool. Uh but like just from personal experience, Marco Sturm’s a phenomenal human being, a great guy, like a was a great player before uh he hurt his knee and kind of his speed uh get taken away. What a was was a a lively fun player to watch. Like played with emotion and passion. Everybody remembers the stern face when he scored goals. That like crazy expression uh he would have on his face when like something good was happening for him or or like he was really feeling it emotionally. and two he’s got two of the biggest goals in in recent Bruins history. You know, the goal he scored against the Canadians where uh Jack Edwards uh in famous uh this building building is vibrating call. Uh that was that that was that moment and it that was the moment that was the game that brought this golden era of Bruins that ended up winning in 2011. That was the start of it. That is where it all like sprouted from originally. that ground swell of excitement, that uh beginning of of ramping up to win the cup of of all of those players coming together as a core group that would eventually be a championship team. That goal was like the lynch pin of all that. That’s where it all started from is him in scoring in that particular game that really drummed up the excite excitement again for the Boston Bruins. And you couple that with him scoring uh the gamewinner in uh the Winter Classic to give them their first Winter Classic win at Fenway Park uh which was another iconic moment uh for the Boston Bruins. Like you know I I think the more I think about it, it makes sense on so many different levels. Like it’s the most logical choice that the Bruins could make based on everything. And I really think his connections to Bruins history, his connections to people in the organization, it makes me feel like it’s going to be his job to lose. And if he wants to be the next head coach of the Boston Bruins, it might be his gig. You know, some of this is educated speculation. Some of this is having talked to people. Uh, but certainly I think his candidacy is going to be as strong or stronger than anybody else’s um to be that guy, especially if they’re going to go down the road the the route of of hiring somebody um that has never been an NHL head coach. I I will say though, I had other people tell me to watch out for Mitch Love and that was a guy the Bruins really liked a lot. Um, so that’s something to consider as well, but I’m not sure it’s going to be Woodcraftoft. I think it’s going to be one of the other two guys and those are the ones whose names I have heard the most uh when when in discussions about this right and if the Penguins if John Henry out bids Charlie Jacobs for Mitch Love then then then the Penguins will will uh take him from the Capitals. They love to rob their rival anyway. We’ve seen Brooks Orick go back and forth between those two franchises. You’re right. You can’t you can’t oversell the Marco Sturm aspects of the years that the Bruins built up after a long dormcancy uh new legitimacy and try and really kind of got a lot of old fans out of mothballs. It was amazing when the Bruins turned the corner with that 20078 team, the first Clo Julian year and the one that ended in the with a trip back to the playoffs. Granted, they lost game seven up in Montreal 5- nothing and were out of the game before it started. That said, this goal that you referred to that Marco Storm scores, I think it’s the goal that makes it six to five. Yep. and they win is is always going to be super important because even after that five nothing loss to that ends the season the next morning the Bruins set the franchise one single day record for full season ticket sales. Yep. They had never ever I mean I would have expected this to happen in 1966 or 1967 after the Espazito trade. Y but it was that it was then y slightly bigger building um maybe not as much already there uh as far as season ticket numbers goes uh but still it’s an amazing record that Sturm is a part of big part and u you know it’s funny when you think about that now 910 season where they go up three games on the Flyers and lose the David Crerache wrist injury is obviously pivotal to that uh because you lose him and you lose Miro Chitan who goes scoreless after leading the team and scoring to that point and but the other thing is is the very beginning of that series I think it’s Marcos Sturm’s first shift early first period he’s down in the right wing corner and and it’s not even really a contact play makes a funny little turn and next thing he’s heading to the bench like something’s wrong and he he ripped up his MCL ACL both and it was just a catastrophic knee injury that was very with a very subtle below the radar kind of motion that was hard to believe. Did he really do that there? And and he did and he never never played for the Bruins again. you know, it’s uh it’s really uh you know, I mean, I always thought that given his contributions, you mentioned the Winter Classic as well, that that he’s I know it’s outside the parameters of what the NHL can do, but to me, that’s he deserves a ring, you know, because he was a huge part of he won’t get it, but he deserves one, you know, for for helping the Bruins climb a big chunk of that mountain. Yeah. No, no question about it. And uh you know, I think that is not an unimportant thing. uh in the eyes of the Boston Bruins, in the eyes of the people making these decisions, I think his contributions to the franchise and and his what he means uh within the history of the franchise is not it’s not a trivial thing. It’s not unimportant. I think it does have a lot of importance. And I think it also, like I said, blends with um what they want to bring back and what they’re interested in bringing back to this team after last year and instilling in this team. and and I I think Marco Sturm is the kind of guy that can do that and certainly he has the credentials and he’s going to have the respect factor on day one just based on what he’s done you know prior to this point. Um but I also think you know it’s it it’s and I’ve mentioned this I think to you and I’ve definitely said it on this podcast before like I think you’re going to start seeing more Bruins of that generation taking over this franchise and being in key roles and we’re already starting to see it. Chris Kelly, Adam Mcuade, guys like that. Um, Zadoara, you’re going to start seeing more of those players coming here and being a part of this franchise and I think pushing them into the next sort of like era that they’re going to be in where they’re going to win a championship. And all of those guys have the credentials. They all won and were part of a nucleus that ended up winning the cup and ending a drought and and, you know, bringing to this city what it longed for as far as hockey fans go. So, I think adding Marco Sturm as the head coach would be another element to that. He wasn’t on the cup winning team, but to your point, played a huge role in building the franchise back up to getting to that point. Um, and I think all of those particular individuals, uh, you know, a lot of them are now filtering into front office management type positions, scouting positions, coaching positions, all that stuff. And I think you’re going to see a lot of them start coming back to Boston and be a part of of raising this team back and retooling this team uh over the next couple of years. And I think it that’s only the way it should be. And I you know if you’ve been around the Bruins enough, you see that’s the way they do things. They want ex Bruins players, people that know what it’s like to wear the spoke B to come in and be a part of the organization and continue what you know the tradition has been and and pay it forward to the next generation of players and make sure that they’re learning uh from those guys and it’s just the way it’s done with the Bruins and the way it’s always been done and I think it’s the way it will continue to be done. Um so I think all of that is really interesting. Um it’s going to be fascinating to see how long this takes to play out. um and when you know they do make an announcement, but I got to imagine at this point they’re within a week or so of of announcing who the new head coach is going to be. I don’t think it’s going to be a long uh drawn out process at this point based on uh you know having people in place and and going through you know second rounds of interviews and things like that and pairing it down to I think less than a handful um of finalist. So uh all that’s going to be interesting. All right, let’s move on to another topic. Mick, we got a long email here from a fan. And bear with me. I’m going to try to get through this. All right. Hey Joe, I’m a big fan of your podcast and work and appreciate the Bruins insights you provide. If you indulge me, I want to chat a bit about some of your recent podcast topics and end with a question for you. There’s been a lot of talk recently about UFAS and RFAS and how Boston can approach those avenues to improve the roster. UFAS will only cost you money, but as we’ve seen with the John Moores, David Bakas’s, Matt Bleskis, you wind up with some albatross contracts. Personally, I think Zidorov and Lynholm will will become good and will will become good and be serviceable players for much of their tenure, but I wonder about the wisdom of jumping into the 2025 UFA market. The big prize, of course, is Mitch Mner, but I don’t see a guy like Mner coming in and having the kind of personality and accountability to live up to what could would be a massive contract. He’d be under scrutiny from day one. And as a game-breaking talent as he is, I don’t think the Bruins would be a great fit for him. You know, the more I watch that playoffs, I kind of agree with what he’s saying. I don’t think Mner is the guy and I don’t think that would be the right choice. Uh if you’re going to spend all that kinds of money, uh there are some other names out there which would help fill out the roster, but again, a lot of money for players that don’t catapult you into contention. This team is too flawed and in need of talent up and down the roster. Free agency, in my opinion, is not how you rebuild a sustainable franchise. You can add a nice piece to complement your core, but those real core players almost never make it to free agency anymore. And if they do, it will be in 2026. McDavid, Paneran, NIS, Eel, etc. I wouldn’t count on all those guys making it to free agency in 2026. By the way, save your money, Boston, and hope for the best. Regarding RFAS, I’ve heard a lot of talk about offer sheets and it’s a viable way to bring in young talent by hamstring cash strapped organizations. St. Louis really did a number on Edmonton last year. Good on them. There are some very interesting names out there. uh Ky, how do you spell uh pronounce Kie Kie Kie uh N that would really inject some youth and talent into Boston’s lineup. But when you get to the compensation required for some of these players, you really need to ask yourself how good this Boston team is going to be next year. I think if everything breaks right, they are a fringe playoff team. Yeah, but I I would say that uh they’re not necessarily doing it for one year that if they’re going an offer sheet and bringing in a player that’s going to be like for that I would suspect it’s at least a two-year um plan to to to retool back and to be in like a decent contender status. So, it goes beyond the one season. But bottom line, that’s fine. I don’t mind taking a step back to retool and bring in the next core players. But if things do not break right, Boston will be a lottery team again. I I don’t see that happening. Do the defensive wes get fixed? Is Swayman who he thought he was? Can anyone other than 88 score on a regular basis? Does Hamp Lynholm return to form after a serious injury? Do any of the next wave of players, Patra, Lysel, Minton, Lmel, Lchmelis, etc. really pop? Some might, most probably won’t. Then you’ve got Vinnie Lati on your third line again. If Boston is a lottery team in 2026, then you’ve just given a first round lottery ticket and a high second round pick for one of those RFA players. Maybe more depending on the compensation. So, what am I getting at? Boston needs to address building this roster a through the draft and B through the trade market. Drafting impact players. This is where Boston needs to really improve. Yes, they’ve been successful finding talent later rounds, but they need to stop thinking they can outsmart the league with their first round picks. They also need to stop drafting third line players in the first round. It’s the trade market where Boston can get creative and really take advantage of their current roster cap situation. rather than burning money on UFAS or burning draft capital on RFAS, take advantage of teams that are cashstrapped or have contracts they want to move on from. My question is, what do you think of this approach? And let’s start with someone like Jonathan Hubo. Now, and this is important. I’m no Hubo apologist. I’m not in love with the player and I’m only using him as an example of how Boston can use their current advantages to maximize resources. Hubo, good player, ugly contract as a former 100point forward who has been underwhelming in Calgary. Adding to this is the fact that his former team and the guy he was traded for is on the cusp for the third straight finals appearance while Cal Calgary has been mired in mediocrity. Calgary would sure love to get out from under the remainder of this contract. Eight years 84 million with six years remaining. Maybe if you take this player out of Western Canada and put him back in the East Playing in the same division as his former team, he has a chip on his shoulder and returns to a level close to his former self. He had 62 points last season which would have put him second on the Bruins. He could be a line driver playing alongside Zaka and someone who’s willing to shoot the puck. Calgary currently owns the 18th overall pick in the draft. Would they be willing to eat some money and package that pick to move on from Hubo? Let’s flesh out a trade here. Calgary gets Casey Middlestat two years remaining 11.5 million. Junis Corposalo three years remaining. Three years 12 million remaining in a 2012 25 fourth round pick. Boston gets Jonathan Hubedo. 6 years 63 million remaining. Uh 2.1 million per season retained. 2025 first round pick 18th overall. Junis has not been happy with his playing time in Boston. While Cal Calgary could use some stability in net sign a backup goal and let them battle it out with DPro busy. Middle stat seems out of place here in Boston with Zakapatra Minton. They have players that can fill that 2C role or youngsters that you want to get a look at. With those two contracts moved along and Calgary retaining 20% of Hubau’s salary, you have a wash for the next couple of seasons. Hubido’s contract is not attractive in terms of a potential buyout. So Boston is taking on the risk of those later years. But I’ve heard rumors that his dip in production has a lot to do with the system in Calgary and not so much from a decline in play. Again, Hubidau is just an example of a distressed asset that can net you more draft capital. Don’t spend money on Band-Aid UFAS. Don’t spend draft capital on RFAS. Do keep your draft picks and use them wisely. Do use your salary cap space as a weapon to leverage more draft picks or young talent through trades. Don’t spend to the hilt this off seasonason and save some cap space for the trade deadline. Exact bigger return from teams. What do you think of an approach like this rather than burning money and draft picks on UFAS and RFAS? All the best and keep up the good work. Slancha. And that was from Sean. There you go, Mick. That was the full uh that was the full message right there. And a knife in a fork. Sean McCarnell, a loyal listener and a big fan. Um I just find some contradictions in that philosophically. It’s like the criticisms and then he proposes something that is could be aligned with one of those buckshot criticisms. I think it’s a huge risk. Hubo, what do you think of trading for Hubido? I think that’s a I think that’s a risk the Bruins can’t afford to to make. I think they could barely afford to do it with Middlestat to take Middle Stat’s contract off Colorado’s hands because it’s only two more years, right? I don’t think you’d take any chances on a player that maybe we can apply LSS and resuscitate this player and and uh and get the best get get him revived in a different situ. How do we know that we’ll the Bruins will be the one that that succeeds at that? I just don’t agree with an approach that that takes a goes for a player who’s going to be core to your team, make a huge piece of money, and be uh a central piece of whether your your trajectory over the next several years on that basis. That’s the money or the cap space is the sticking point with you most likely. I think the term contract the term the term is the is the sticking point with me like middle stat uh he obviously needs to elevate his game in order to to be the next player that the Bruins acquire and make better than he was in his career prior to Allah Hampus Lynholm or Pavo Zaka Morgan Geeki and and if if Middle can respond then he has a career with the Bruins and an extension coming. If Middle continues to meander in his career and does not show the signs of a guy who can uh catch some fire with Boston and and and really kind of buy in um and change change as necessary and grow his game um as he enters his prime years, then at least the Bruins aren’t tag aren’t attached to that. I don’t feel like I don’t feel strongly enough about Hubido that I would dig into somebody on that kind of basis with term. Okay. Uh before I get into my take on this, I’m going to remind everybody that you’re listening to this episode of the podcast Hack Bucks with Hags podcast, we ask that you subscribe to the podcast, like and leave a review. And for those watching the show on CLNS and enjoying all this hockey talk, go ahead and hit that like button and subscribe to the Bruins Ringside YouTube channel where you can find our show and a lot of other great Bruins content with fellow Bruins talkers like Connor Ryan and Evan Marinowski. There’s also the CLNS Media Network and Patriots Press Pass YouTube channels as well. Also, please make sure to turn on your notifications so you know the Instant New Pucks with Hags podcast drops on the interwebs. All right, this is my thought here. I actually like this idea. Uh because you’re you’re what you’re going to be trading away is two contracts you want to get out from under anyway. Corposalo and Middlestat, right? Like I did not love Casey Middlestat in the short time that I watched him play here at the end of the season. Like I could appreciate the skating. I could appreciate the skill level. He made some plays. I certainly think he’s a talented offensive player. I just didn’t think he was consistent enough. I didn’t think he was hard had a hard enough edge that he played with. I certainly don’t think he was paying any attention to like defensive responsibilities whatsoever. I did not see a guy that I feel like really is a Bruins type player or is going to be an asset as a center on this team. Um, and I can see why he was traded a couple of times. So, like I’m perfectly okay with trading him somewhere else. Corposalo, I think, is fine, but he’s very he’s like expensive as a backup. he’s on the higher end of what you’re paying a backup to be. Um, and if he wants to play more, you might be better off trading him than, you know, listening to that for the next three years. So, and and if it turns into you’re taking on um Hubedo’s salary because Calgary wants to dump it or would like to get rid of it, you’re going to be able to ask for a first round pick back. Like, that’s the going rate for taking on contracts like that. So, that makes a lot of sense what he’s saying. Uh, and if you could get Hubedo uh at a reduced rate and even if it’s long-term and you could get a first round pick and you’re trading nothing away that’s of like real value to your franchise and you know where you’re going, I think you make the gamble that um he’s going to get his game back and he’s going to be a pretty serviceable player at a reduced rate for the next handful of years, particularly with the cup the the cap going up over hund00 million a couple years from now, like the cap is going so far up that Hubo is not really going to be that much of a strain um on your salary cap by the time it goes over 100 million like two or three years down the road. And um from what I can gather in the people that I had talked to about Hubardo like consistently, he was an East Coast guy. He did not like being traded out to Calgary. I don’t think he’s particularly happy out there. Certainly, he’s playing that way. Um, and that bringing him back east, I think would get the best out of him. And I think would, you know, maybe he turns into a player that you is a better fit than Lynholm in that 1C spot if that’s where you wanted to put him. Uh, certainly I think he is a guy that has performed in the Atlantic division, has had high-end skill, and would and is a better I think fit as a top six better fits the profile of a top six forward that you need to bring in. They need a couple of top six forwards. There’s no question about that. After trading away uh Coyle, after trading away Marshand, after losing de Brusk the year before, they need at least two top six forwards to bring into this team at least. Um and he’s a guy that would fit that profile even like he mentioned like is he would have been what’s that? What motivates Calgary in this case theoretically? Why does Calgary want to do this deal? To get out from under the contract. If they if they think he’s not a player that’s happy there and he’s never going to be as good as they thought he was going to be, I think it would be to get get out from under the contract and start over again. Um, that would be the motivation like that and that’s a big scored 28 goals, right? So, is he really like that distressed or is it somebody that they’re going to be willing to give up a first round pick for? I don’t think so. You know, that’s that’s the bottom line is I don’t know that Calgary is going to be that desperate to get rid of him that they’re going to do all this what what he’s proposing. I think if they did want to do it, you do it in a second. I would do it in a hot second, but I just don’t think Calgary is going to do it. I also don’t think the Bruins goending is a problem that needs continued solving. I kind of feel like they got what they want. Corposalo is competitive. The Bruins were a mess. He was playing well. He thought he deserved more. He was honest about it. Good. Yeah. Yeah. Now, let’s go back to work here and and let’s uh let’s be more equitable now that the mission is not compromised anymore by the terrible circumstances under which the season began last this past season. You don’t have a situation where Fleman’s going to miss his camp. You have a situation where it’s going to be a square start, no pun intended, and and then the chips will fall and guys will play what they ought to be playing based on that. It just was a really screwy year. It was a situation where they went out of their way to try to get Swayman going before he was up to it and a lot of things weren’t up to it and and Corposal was affected by that and he didn’t like it. Don’t blame him. I don’t think that that’s a reason to trade the guy. No. Um, and I I do think like if they’re going to try to get back to the all mark sway dynamic of like, you know, a one and a one or two headed sort of goalending situation where they’re uh competing with each other. They do have to play Corpus Alamo more and he might be the right guy to to create that kind of situation, you know, because he’s played so much in the league and he’s kind of a, you know, he’s he’s a um he’s a bonafide NHL goalender. So I I I think if they want to get back to the way it had been, he might be the right guy. And maybe they don’t want to move him at all. And they envision him and and Swayman as as being a 1A situation that will be what they were when they were at their best. Uh let me ask you this, Mick. Um how much do you take from the the World Championships that just ended um that were good for the Bruins? No question about it. Swayman uh was excellent. Uh finished seven and0. They won the gold medal. um great game. He played really well in the tournament. Uh the numbers were getting back to more sway-like numbers. Um you know, how much of that do you derive optimism from? And then also the two leading scorers in the tournament were Posternneck and uh Elias Lynholm. Elias Lynholm had an awesome tournament for for team Sweden. Um, and and yes, it’s kind of like uh people call it like a JV tournament or people call it like, you know, a tournament of guys that uh you couldn’t either get into the playoffs or couldn’t do much in the playoffs when they got there. So, it’s not necessarily the best on best that the, you know, the world absolutely has. There are players missing because they’re still playing in the in the Stanley Cup playoffs and some players just don’t go. Uh, but I still think there’s something to draw from the way Lindholm played for Sweden. he was their best player. Um, and from the way Swamman played for Team USA and the way he played in big moments and the way he kind of rebounded and Andrew Peak for that matter played really good for Team USA as well. Mason Lorai played well early, did not see playing time in the last few games as a couple of guys also, veteran guys came uh from eliminated teams and kind of took more spots or more playing time. But I think there’s a lot of encouraging things that developed at the World Championships from a Bruins perspective. I agree. Especially since this world’s was populated with a lot of guys who otherwise would not have gone. But it’s Olympic year next year and I think that that really put the world’s on the table for a lot of veteran players who otherwise would have said, “Ah, I’m kind of sore. This hurts. That hurts. I think I’m done.” And and take their summer. Um, a lot of those guys went this year. And I think that that in intensifies the competitive level of the tournament and and thereby uh lends cred to the performances that we saw from members of the Bruins. I got to think Buffalo’s pretty encouraged too by what they got, you know, and that and that uh that there are teams that you know you hockey just beautiful to watch shoot the puck, isn’t he? Yeah. and and Paul Maurice famously says he doesn’t believe in momentum and I understand the context in which he says that. That said, how often do do late season acquisitions or callups or or players at Bloom that that carries over to the next season? You know, it’s it it’s not like an automatic thing. It’s not like a paper airplane that won’t land. It’s just that um these are trajectories that Lias Lynholm was playing a hell of a lot better with the Bruins toward the end of the season than he was. Yep. U through the first twothirds of it. Y so even though the season went away and it didn’t matter anymore and it turned into junk and and it turned effectively into a tank. Um, I thought he was great down the stretch and it was and yeah, it’s no point in talking about it because until the hockey matters again, the outcomes matter again uh in a positive way then u then what anybody did won’t matter then other than the fact that it says hey look at this guy play this this is good because from a personal standpoint here’s a guy who’s gone through so much change in his career in his life. So to come here and have walk into a complete crap show of a season and and it never really settled in for him at the end in garbage time he found himself. Yeah. I don’t care that it happened then. I think it’s great that he did and I’m not surprised that he had a good Worlds. I’m not surprised that Swayman had a good Worlds. He was better for the Bruins toward the end. Um, and uh, yeah, uh, hey, one of the worst record I’ve ever seen the Bruins post in my lifetime, they had a young player, an 18-year-old named Bobby Ore, right? You know, you can you something good was coming. I think something good is coming now, too. I just think that there’s uh a value that things are going to settle in and we’re going to see um much better versions on average of these players for next season and I think the Bruins are going to be a hell of a lot better for it and it’ll matter. So yeah, I I take that seriously. I think those opportunities are huge. I think it’s the same for the called the Cup playoffs for any opportunities that your prospects get to play those games and the the Providence Bruins almost lost their first round because they were getting goalie out of a series, but they they battled. They hung in there. They got an overtime win and and got it to three and then won the best of three. Got in the next series and that was a hell of a series. So, it was it was really good to see that they came into very intense competitive situation where they had to perform in order to uh extend their window and their opportunity to improve and it didn’t get as far as they wanted, but it got a lot further than it might have with the with the goalie situation in the opening series. Not theirs. Their other guy was great. Yep. No, I agree. Um, and the other part of it, uh, just amazing that, um, it had been over 90 years since Team USA had won at the World Championships, which Yeah, that’s amazing. I don’t even know how that happens, but I know, especially when you consider things like Valley, you know? I mean, how the heck how the heck do you uh have a miracle on ice before the miracle on ice 20 years later? And and somewhere in all of this, you never won the Worlds. Well, because I I guess maybe it’s changed as far as like players wanting to go and play in that. You know what I mean? For a long time, it probably was guys just didn’t feel like going and it wasn’t something um that they, you know, many gravitated towards after their NHL season was over. It just wasn’t worth it. And I think it’s become um I think it’s become a point of pride with the American players now. They’re starting to view themselves as an international powerhouse hockey-wise and they’re really starting to see themselves in a different light as far as winning all these international competitions and you know getting USA hockey on the medal stand as much as possible. And I think you’re starting to see that more and more. Uh especially like you said a year before an Olympic year. But I think in general I I I think you’ve started to see I think in the last 5 10 years and it’s coincided with the US national um team development program and and what that’s turned into too that it’s it’s a whole different ballgame now for USA hockey than it used to be. Do they still have the Spangler Cup? Yeah. Yeah. I mean that that tournament there is like uh the epitome of the other international hockey tournament that kind of is sort of like you know a bunch of guys who either an age career ahlers or fringe NHLers or somebody who played out the string in France or some nonhockey country and and and those will be their opportunities. I just think that in an expanded a bloated NHL with 32 teams trying to win one trophy that every competitive platform that the league’s teams via uh with the limits of the collective bargaining agreement anytime they can get their players to play in these events. They figure those are developmental opportunities for their guys to build their team, build their culture, build those players careers, future, all of that stuff. I think the importance of all of these tournaments is just going to keep on rising. Yeah. No, I think so, too. Um, Mick, thank you very much for joining us. Let’s thank everybody out there for listening. And for those of you listening to this episode of the Pucks with Hags podcast, we ask that you subscribe to the podcast, like and leave a review. And for those watching the show on CLNS and enjoying all this hockey talk, go ahead and hit that like button. and subscribe to the Bruins Ringside YouTube channel where you can find our show and a lot of other great Bruins content with fellow Bruins talkers like Connor Ryan and Evan Marinowski. There’s also the CLNS Media Network and Patriots press pass YouTube channels as well. Also, please make sure to turn on your notifications so you know the instant a new Pucks with Hacks podcast video drops on the interwebs. Mick, thank you very much for joining us. See you at the rink. Everybody else out there, thanks for listening. We’ll see you at the rink. [Music]

On this episode of Pucks with Haggs, host Joe Haggerty and guest Mick Colageo discuss the Bruins getting down to a last few head coaching candidates, and whether former Bruins forward Marco Sturm would be a good choice for the head job. That, and much more!

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