The Boston Bruins begin the 2022-23 season Wednesday night on the road against the Washington Capitals. In the final preseason edition of Bruins Weekly, there were some surprising moves by the Black and Gold’s front office, a young defenseman who struggled a the end of camp, and more.
Bruins Get No Help With Foligno
Nick Foligno played his best game of the preseason in the final audition Saturday night against the New Jersey Devils, but that did not keep general manager (GM) Don Sweeney from placing the veteran forward on waivers Sunday. It was somewhat of a surprising move, considering that first-year coach Jim Montgomery already praised the 34-year-old and had plans to use him in multiple situations this season.
Foligno was one of five Bruins brought in during Sweeney’s 2021 free-agent spending spree and was handed the biggest contract of the group, a two-year, $7.6 million deal with an average annual value (AAV) of $3.8 million. That’s a lot of money for a forward that in 64 games last season had two goals and 13 points with a dismal plus/minus of minus-13.
There were other options that Sweeney had over the offseason to move Foligno with a buyout, but he did not make that move. Sunday, he put Foligno, along with Chris Wagner and Mike Reilly on waivers, but all three players cleared on Monday and will return to the Bruins. Despite the strong finish to the preseason, the question now must be asked, where does Foligno fit in going forward this season?
Zboril’s Struggles in Final Two Preseason Games
When the Bruins took the ice against the Philadelphia Flyers on Sept. 24 for their first preseason game, Jakub Zboril stood out quickly with his play on defense. He was all over the ice, making smart decisions, playing in all situations, and was the best blueline for Jim Montgomery in the first half of the preseason schedule. Unfortunately for the 13th overall pick in the 2015 Entry Draft, he did not end the preseason the same way it began.
Zboril struggled mightily in the last two preseason games as he was on the ice for six of the final nine goals the Black and Gold gave up to the New York Rangers and New Jersey Devils. He finished both games with a minus-3 and frustration boiled over late in the third period of Saturday’s 5-3 loss to the Devils when he lost control of the puck inside the Bruins blueline and Tomas Tatar collected the puck and scored into an empty net to seal the win. Zboril slammed his stick on the back of the net after the goal. Montgomery said that Zboril is coming back from a knee injury and it will take time for him to be consistently good.
“We have to remember that he is a young man who just came back from ACL reconstruction, and I think the excitement of playing was when he was on top of his game. The more you play, the more you get the grind of it mentally, having to assert yourself again every game to prepare the right way and to make plays. When you’re coming back, you aren’t in a rhythm of playing a lot of hockey games in a short amount of time and he’s going through that right now. We knew there were going to be moments where he wouldn’t be consistently good for us, just because of the fact that he was coming back from the injury and all of the time off.”
Despite his late preseason struggles, Zboril is going to be a big part of the defense early in the season with Charlie McAvoy and Matt Grzelcyk recovering from offseason surgeries.
Bruins Getting Some Early Home Cooking
After playing the Capitals, the Bruins return home for their season opener Saturday night against the Arizona Coyotes, which kicks off a stretch of six of the next eight games in the month of October at the TD Garden. The only two other road games this month with be against the Ottawa Senators on Oct. 18 and the Columbus Blue Jackets on Oct. 28.
Related: Bruins Make Wrong Decision Sending McLaughlin to AHL
The month of October is going to be big for the Bruins with the games at home and missing key pieces to the roster. There is an opportunity to get off to a good start in the standings, as you can’t get a playoff spot early in the season, but you can certainly put yourself behind the 8-ball and bury yourself in the standings with a slow start.
Bruins Quotes of the Week
- Montgomery speaking about Jakub Lauko and what he can bring to the fourth line: “His speed, his ability to put the other team on their heels by how he drives the net off the rush – he’s just someone that can bring speed to the third and fourth line, that tenacity and physicality involved.”
- Montgomery speaking about top prospect Fabian Lysell after he was sent to the Providence Bruins in the American Hockey League (AHL): “[Lysell] needs to learn the consistency of being a pro. I think [Jack] Studnicka has learned that, he’s had his tutelage in Providence. I think that’s why he could assert himself playing against [Vincent] Trocheck most of the night [Wednesday] night. And Lysell, that’s his first time, you’re in Madison Square Garden, you’re playing against [Artemi] Panarin and [Mika] Zibanejad and all those guys you’ve watched on TV.”
- Lauko speaking after Saturday night’s preseason game against the Devils and the extra motivation he had for people who wonder why he was still in Boston: “It kind of pissed me off, to be honest.”
- Bruins team president Cam Neely speaking on the bond of the 2022-23 team: “I think this group in the locker room feel like something special can happen this year. It’s a close team and when I say team, it’s a real team.”
Bruins Week Ahead
- Wednesday: at Washington Capitals, 7 p.m.
- Saturday: vs. Arizona Coyotes, 7 p.m.
- Monday: vs. Florida Panthers, 7 p.m.
- Tuesday: at Ottawa Senators, 7 p.m.
