Bruins GM Chiarelli obviously isn't worried about his club's 'toughness'
With super-heavyweights like forward Milan Lucic and defender Zdeno Chara on the roster and an organizational penchant for controversial hits, comments and moments; the surliness and 'team toughness' of this iteration of the Boston Bruins has become iconic.
Ask hockey fans in Toronto, Buffalo or Vancouver about the Bruins, and you'll find them characterized as "bullies," (or, as something less polite).
Considering the club's personnel and track record, Boston Bruins general manager Peter Chiarelli hasn't often felt the need to vouch for the toughness of his hockey club.
With the departure of veteran pugilist Shawn Thornton as an unrestricted free agent this summer, that has changed somewhat. It's clear that some observers believe that the loss of Thornton eats away at Boston's "toughness" in a meaningful way.
That notion was rejected by Chiarelli this past weekend.
"I believe [the team toughness] is already there, I do. We have a couple of candidates that played in Providence that surely could fit in if we need them. But I really think it’s already there, I do," the long-tenured Bruins executive told CSNNE's Joe Haggerty. "You’re going to see Adam [McQuaid] back, whoever’s playing D, so we’ve got some tough guys there that can hold up their own. So I believe it’s already there."
During the 2013-14 NHL season the Bruins fought 46 times in the regular season according to data compiled at hockeyfights.com. Those 46 fights were the second most by a team in the league, behind only the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Thornton led all Bruins players with 10 fights, while fellow outgoing Bruins forward Jarome Iginla was fourth, with five fights on the season.
Finding players to replace those bouts won't be easy for the Bruins this upcoming season, though as Chiarelli points out, the return of Adam McQuaid - who fought seven times in just 30 games last year - will help. As could a full-time promotion for AHL forward Matt Fraser, who fought five-times between the NHL and AHL last season. Not that a potential lack of fisticuffs will trouble the Bruins' general manager necessarily.
"You know, there’s trends in hockey and the fisticuffs trend — again, this doesn’t characterize Thorty as 'just a fighter' because he contributed on that [fourth] line." Chiarelli said in May. "That line has had a lot of success in the past," continued the Bruins executive, in speaking about Thornton and the lionized 'Merlot line' that also featured Gregory Campbell and Dan Paille. "But there is definitely... We’re trending away from that style."
Chiarelli's comments would suggest that a player like Ryan Spooner, who managed to produce at nearly a point per game rate with the Providence Bruins a year ago, is more likely to see time in Boston's bottom-six next season than a farmhand tough like Bobby Robbins - who fought a stunning 25 times in the AHL last season. Spooner, it should be noted, racked up a minuscule eight penalties in minutes in 49 games with the Bruins' top minor league team last season.