Bruins

Building the perfect Bruin: Bruins players highlight teammates’ most coveted skills

"He's probably the most gifted skater I've ever played with."

By Conor Ryan

May 16, 2024

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Every player draped in a black-and-gold sweater on Friday night will be fixated on the same end goal against the Florida Panthers. 

But the manner in which each Bruins player tilts the ice in Boston’s favor might differ, based on their unique skill set. 

Whereas David Pastrnak is at his best when he’s uncorking his blistering one-timer from the left circle, a winning shift from Johnny Beecher likely involves a successful forecheck generated off his 0-to-60 acceleration. 

Charlie McAvoy has the heft and timing to send opposing skaters into the upper stratosphere with a bone-rattling hit, while Brandon Carlo’s reach and stick work intercepts cross-seam passes and snuffs out scoring chances with regularity. 

But what is the most coveted skill that a Bruins player currently possesses? 

With the Stanley Cup Playoffs still in full swing, Boston.com posed a simple question to several Bruins players: Which skill from a teammate would you most want to add to your game?

On a roster featuring plenty of skill, speed, and snarl, there was far from a consensus.  

David Pastrnak’s shot 

Stay-at-home defenseman Derek Forbort might have said it best. 

“Pasta’s scoring ability,” the 32-year-old blueliner flatly declared. “Because then I’d make a lot more money.”

Pastrnak is in the first season of an eight-year, $90 million contract thanks to his ability to shred through even the sturdiest defensive structures — highlighted by his howitzer of a one-timer. 

“He’s very good at getting pucks through and obviously picking his spots,” Hampus Lindholm said of Pastrnak’s shot. “Just kind of finding that open net is a skill that few master and it’s fun to see when he does it.” 

An offensive-minded defenseman like Mason Lohrei already wields a wicked wrist shot, as Sergei Bobrovsky can attest to. But Pastrnak’s one-timer is in a class of its own, according to the rookie skater. 

“I don’t have the greatest one-timer in the world, something I’ve been working on a lot,” Lohrei said. “So I could wake up one day with his one-timer?  I think that might have to be the one I’d go with. It’s nuts.”

Pastrnak has lit the lamp 348 times already in his NHL career, but he’s far from a one-trick pony in terms of his offensive ability.

Not only does he have the hands to beat goalies in tight or on breakaways, but the star winger has made significant strides in his playmaking capabilities this season — recording a career-best 63 assists as the primary offensive conduit on his line.  

“I would say Pasta’s stickhandling or elusiveness,” Trent Frederic said. “I’ll take that. … The stuff he does, just slipping past guys and keeps [the puck]? I’m like, I can’t do that.”

Unlike his partner in net Linus Ullmark, Jeremy Swayman is still in search of that sought-after goalie goal. Having a shot like Pastrnak could help him finally light the lamp at some point. 

“Goal scorer, baby,” Swayman said. “I think having a Pasta drag and shoot without looking? That’s a sick trait to have.”

Straight-line speed

Over the span of his impressive NHL career, Brad Marchand has gone from a fourth-line pest to a franchise winger. The 36-year-old wing has seen his game evolve over the years as his defensive game and playmaking prowess flourished. 

But there are some skills out on the frozen sheet that just can’t be honed and improved over time. As such, Marchand didn’t take long to give his pick. 

“I would take Johnny Beecher’s speed,” Marchand said. “I think in this day and age, the most important thing is your skating ability. He’s probably the most gifted skater I’ve ever played with.

“I don’t think you can skate well enough in this game, especially nowadays — it just keeps getting faster. It’s hard to improve. It’s hard to teach it. Once you get to this level, you kind of have what you have and you can improve it a little bit but not to that level. So yeah, I would take Johnny’s speed. He’s got a gift.”

Another fourth-line stalwart for the Bruins also received a shoutout for his ability to speed past skaters in a hurry. 

“I don’t know if I’m in a spot to get the Pasta shot off all the time,” Andrew Peeke said. “So I’m gonna not say that one. I’m going with some elusive skaters. Maybe [Jesper] Boqvist’s skating, his skating ability to pivot out of turns and break away from guys. That’s pretty fun to watch. Something like that would probably help me a little bit.” 

Puck magnets

Charlie Coyle was another popular choice among his teammates, due in large part to his ability to play keep-away with the puck against opposing players. 

Beyond his stick work, the 6-foot-3, 218-pound Coyle is hard to steer away from Grade-A ice when he’s skating with a head of steam, and is often an anchor along the boards when shielding the biscuit from poke checks. 

“I would say probably Charlie Coyle’s physique — like how he can skate with like two guys on his back and still make plays,” Boqvist said. “And that’s something I’m working on and I’ve been better but I still have a long way to go. … Playing against him? You notice he’s good, but seeing it every day? Yeah, I love watching him.” 

“Jakub Lauko concurred with Boqvist — noting that Coyle’s puck-protection skills are the often unheralded traits that lead to consistent, quality chances in the offensive zone. 

“I’ll probably take CC’s puck protection. The guy’s a horse,” Lauko said. “It’s unbelievable how he can hold onto a puck and go in and around and just get the biscuit — and he’s not giving it to anyone.

“You’ve got Pasta’s hands, his release. Marchy’s ability to go one-on-one and stuff like that. But I think that CC’s puck protection and ability to hold onto the puck is one of the most impressive ones.” 

Danton Heinen (6-foot-2, 195 pounds) may not have the same frame as Coyle. But the versatile forward’s stick allows him to fish pucks out of board battles, disrupt passing lanes, and jumpstart Boston’s transition game. 

“I’ll take Heino’s stick,” Beecher said. “The guy’s a magnet. Guy gets every puck. So it’s a good skill to have — keeps you in the league. You just see him on the forecheck, he always gets his stick in the right spot, is always able to break up plays, find the next guy open. D zone, penalty kill. 

“I mean, his stick details are just unbelievable down there. It helps our team out tremendously. That’s how you win games, especially this time of the year. So props to him and I’ll try and learn that skill.”

Freight-train hits

Morgan Geekie is no stranger to landing welts against opponents, with the 25-year-old forward ranking fifth on the team this year with 137 hits. But even with his propensity for doling out punishment, Geekie still covets of his teammates’ ability to shift the momentum of a game with highlight-reel hit.

“I think I would take Charlie McAvoy’s … Can I take two? I’ll take his skating and his physicality,” Geekie said. “I think he moves so well. He’s a big guy — and the way he moves and the physicality he plays with? It would definitely help add to my game for sure.”

Confidence and a short memory

Pastrnak’s shot might have been the obvious pick as far as most sought-after skills, but Coyle believes that his teammate’s most underrated trait is his ability to flush miscues and poor shifts out his subconscious in record time. 

Hockey might be a game of mistakes, but few players have the ability to let those inevitable faults roll off their shoulders to the same degree as a player like Pastrnak, according to Coyle. 

“I think Pasta’s ability to — I don’t know how to word this. Almost kind of his confidence to try things or just be himself and to do certain things and shoot the puck as much as he does.  I don’t know, there’s little pieces of each guy that you can definitely take — everyone has their own strengths.

“I always look at Pasta and just his demeanor, how he goes about things. A guy who cares so much. But I think he’s very good at letting things kind of — if he messes up, he can put it behind him and move on. I think that’s what really good players are able to do.”

A D-zone stalwart in Carlo also praised Pastrnak’s poise under pressure. 

“I think the biggest thing that I’ve noticed in the skilled players within this league is having a sort of mentality and being calm and confident,” Carlo said. “That’s something that I always admire within a player and notice that the top guys always have. 

“So that’s something that I’m trying to emulate and just have for myself. I think everybody in this league deserves to have that. You’ve obviously made it to this point.  Just continue to carry yourself in a calm and confident way.”

Marchand’s inner drive

It should come as little surprise that Marchand is revered in Boston’s dressing room — even when he’s not able to take to the frozen sheet. 

But beyond his evident skills and pugnacious style of play, several of Marchand’s teammates praised his mindset and just how coveted that unyielding competitiveness is this time of year. 

“It’s the whole competitiveness with Marchy,” Pavel Zacha said. “He’s probably the most competitive guy I’ve ever played against or played with. If it’s in a practice or in a game, he’s always pushing to get better.” 

“Marchy’s competitiveness —  it’s relentless,” Swayman added. “It’s something that I get to look up to every day and watch and replicate.” 

That fire and emotion emitting from Marchand would be welcomed on the ice if Boston’s captain is cleared for Friday’s do-or-die Game 6 matchup against the Panthers. 

“It’s a good mixture of everything,” Linus Ullmark said of Marchand’s mindset. “He’s gone and he’s taken a long route. He started off in Providence and worked his way up as a fourth-line guy, kept improving and improving.

“Now you see —  all-time goalscorer in Bruins [playoff] history. That’s a lot of credit to that guy. And if he didn’t have that mentality and the professionalism, the mental strength and the tenacity, he wouldn’t be here. He wouldn’t be our captain.”