Bruins Acquiring Ehlers Would Solve Goal Scoring Needs
The Stanley Cup Final is almost finished. The greatest trophy in all of sports will be in the building Tuesday night and the Florida Panthers have the chance to capture their first ever Stanley Cup. However, the work in the offseason is already beginning for the other 30 teams, as they begin to plan their next moves this summer.
Free agency is not far away (July 1), and the NHL Draft (June 28) is right before it. Some teams are willing to trade their draft picks in order to upgrade their teams and some key players could be available for trade. For the Boston Bruins, the biggest trade chip they have is goaltender Linus Ullmark. The return for Ullmark remains to be seen, but there is an area that the Bruins need to improve on.
The Area of Improvement
Goal scoring, goal scoring, and more goal scoring. If there is an area of improvement for the Bruins, it is getting more goals. It’s not to say they were bad in that area entirely. As a team during the 2023-24 regular season, they finished 13th in goals scored with 263. Also, they saw players such as Morgan Geekie, Charlie Coyle, and Pavel Zacha have career seasons. It was huge to see those guys seize bigger roles and become impactful depth players. However, that goal scoring dried up in the playoffs and took a turn in the opposite direction.
After a hot start to the playoffs, Brad Marchand didn’t score a goal the rest of the way, and both Coyle and Zacha combined for two goals the entire postseason. The impactful depth that was evident in the regular season was shut down, and in key moments. At the end of the season, general manager Don Sweeney eluded to it in his exit interview by saying,
“It reared its head at the most inopportune time,” Sweeney said, “that we weren’t able to finish in quality chances, and in some cases, guys that generally do finish in quality situations of that nature.”
For the Bruins, there are options this offseason to add additional scoring. The free agency class has standout players such as Jake Guentzel, Sam Reinhart and Steven Stamkos. While spending in free agency is crucial, Sweeney could turn to the trade market. The player that the Bruins should look at and target is Nikolaj Ehlers.
The Player Ehlers Is
The Bruins need an influx of goal scoring. For the second year in a row, David Pastrnak led the team in goals and was the only player to score beyond 30 during the 2023-24 season. It remains to be seen if Jake DeBrusk is coming back, so inquiring about Ehlers makes sense for the Bruins.
Ehlers is a tremendous talent who can play both left wing and right wing. Having that added versatility is a huge boost towards constructing the lineup. He is a player who plays with tremendous speed and has a ton of skill to go with it. His ability to create offense is evident, as he is an efficient playmaker and a superb finisher.
Ehlers finished the 2023-24 season with 61 points, which was tied for third on the Winnipeg Jets. He generated 18.4 expected goals, but went on to score 25 and showed great finishing ability. Of his 61 points, he had 36 assists (24 being primary) and showed he is much more than a goal scorer. He was also 64th among skaters who played at least 55 minutes in points per 60 minutes with 2.81. The one key element to Ehlers is not how good he is performing but where he’s performing from.
Ehlers has played up and down the lineup. He has spent time on the top line with Mark Scheifele, but has also been on the third line. For him to have that type of production in various spots is huge, especially for the Bruins. He would be a huge boost for the Bruins and would fit in like a glove.
How Ehlers Benefits the Bruins
Ehlers could play on the top two lines and provide an immediate boost production-wise. Whether it is with Coyle or Zacha, a dynamic forward would be present in the lineup. There are elements that the Bruins are looking for and Ehlers is the perfect target. Sweeney touched on the Bruins needing that extra layer of goal scoring, but Cam Neely touched on another element.
“This game is fast,” Neely said. “We’re not as fast as we’d like to be. Some of that had to do with last offseason, what we were really kind of hamstrung in trying to accomplish. I think Don and our pro staff did a really good job last season and built a team that competed the way that they did.”
The Bruins want to get faster and Ehlers is a perfect fit, as he uses his speed to create chances and is a smooth skater. Also, he brings that added scoring to the lineup and with an increased role could score more. His 25 goals this season would’ve tied him for third on the Bruins and his 61 points would’ve placed him third. He is a perfect fit, but acquiring him would be a challenge.
A Perfect Fit But At What Cost?
There is no denying that Ehlers would be a great addition to the Bruins. With Brad Marchand getting older, they do need to plan for the future. Marchand is still producing at a high rate (67 points during the 2023-24 season), but eventually, he is going to hang up his skates.
Ehlers has one year left on his contract and has a salary cap hit of $6 million per season. Also, he has a modified no-movement clause. It would be a tough trade to pull off, as the Bruins do not have a draft pick until the fourth round. If they do indeed get a return for Ullmark, they could use some of those assets to acquire Ehlers.
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