For the Bruins and their fans, it’s probably going to be a little painful each time the team plays the New York Islanders.
Watching last night’s matchup — an impressive and entertaining 3-2 win by the Islanders at the Garden — as well as two more games that will follow in the regular season (maybe a playoff clash, too), it’s impossible to look at No. 55 on the Islanders, defenseman Johnny Boychuk, and not recall how the Bruins gave him away and didn’t get a whole lot in return.
The departure of the Bruins’ cornerstone defenseman Zdeno Chara, who left with an apparent injury after just five shifts last night, underscored how much Boychuk is missed.
Boychuk had a scoreless but busy night for his new team. He appeared to score with a first-period slapper, but the goal was disallowed by a penalty on a teammate for goalie interference. He took a big open-ice hit from former Bruins teammate Milan Lucic, and later a pretty good thud on the end boards from former teammate Dennis Seidenberg. Late in the second period, he rang a shot off a goal post.
“It was an interesting night,” said Boychuk. “When Looch hit me, that’s when I realized I was playing against them. With his strength and speed he just steamrolled me.
“They’re a good team. We came in here and we were determined. We held them off in the last five minutes. They had chances. The other ex-Bruin (Chad Johnson) made some great saves and kept us in the game when we needed it.
“They lose ‘Z’ and that’s huge. I mean, huge for us, because he’s such a good player. When they didn’t have him, we just kept putting pucks in and trying to grind them down. I just hope he’s OK.”
To be fair to his former bosses with the Bruins, there were sensible reasons Boychuk was dealt to the Islanders just before the start of the season. And it’s too soon to grade the trade because the Bruins have yet to use the two second-round picks acquired for Boychuk, either as bait for a future trade or to select players who someday could make the team’s roster.
Clearly, the Bruins willingly took a step backward in trading Boychuk. It was a deal they didn’t have to make. They could have held on to the 30-year-old defenseman and tried to trade him later — or even allowed him to walk away as a free agent next July.
Boychuk got a warm welcome last night, lustily cheered by the sellout crowd and, in a classy gesture, saluted by the team via a scoreboard video.
“It was just classy,” he said. “The fans, I heard them the whole time.”
No doubt, plenty of B’s fans were royally ticked off to see him wearing the blue-and-orange color scheme of the Islanders.
Boychuk handled the occasion in a typically good-natured way. This is a guy who rode the buses in the minors for a long time, and treasures every day he has in the NHL. He goes to work with a smile on his face every day.
Was he angry when he was traded?
“Well . . . I mean . . . it’s tough to be angry, ’cause (Bruins general manager Peter Chiarelli) was in a situation where he had to make a move,” said Boychuk. “It’s part of the business nowadays with the cap.
“I mean, how can I be angry with them, when they gave me the opportunity to play in the NHL? And gave me the opportunity to be a regular player in this league. You can’t be angry at him, because they gave me the opportunity to be here.”
He has no doubt the B’s will figure out their lineup issues and be fine.
“Yeah, of course, they always find a way,” said Boychuk. “I remember after we won (the 2011 Stanley Cup) everybody was saying what a tough time we had (early in 2011-12). Then we turned around in November and went undefeated.”
Looking back at the trade, Boychuk said he wasn’t surprised.
“Even with Torey (Krug) and Reilly (Smith) signing, we still had the problem of having eight (players on) defense,” said Boychuk. “We knew that wasn’t going to happen, (Chiarelli) had stated that it wasn’t. So, we knew something was going to happen. When he phones me and he goes, ‘Hey, Johnny, it’s Peter,’ you obviously knew why he’s phoning you at midday.”
So off Boychuk went to Long Island, where he settled in quickly with his new team.
“He’s an easy guy to like,” said Islanders winger Cal Clutterbuck. “He puts himself out there. I think a lot of guys take a little while to warm up (with a new team) and get used to being themselves again. But Johnny, with the way he is, what a colorful character he is.
“You guys here know what he’s like. He’s full of life every day. It’s good to come in and see him every day. He’s like a 9- or 10-year-old kid.”
As important a player as Boychuk was for the Bruins, he’ll carry a larger role with the Isles. He came in last night averaging a team-high 22:50 in ice time.
“The talent is unbelievable here, that’s for sure,” he said. “We have a great team. The skill set is very high. We just have to execute and believe in ourselves.”
Paired with former Blackhawks defenseman Nick Leddy, who was acquired on the same day by New York GM Garth Snow, Boychuk has two goals and four assists and a plus-5 rating through seven games. He’s a key to a super-talented power play, which has produced seven power-play goals.
Earning $3.4 million this year, Boychuk is slated to be a unrestricted free agent and is expected to be one of the prized targets on the market.
A pact of at least $5 million annually seems like a sure thing for Boychuk, which is a main reason the B’s made the trade. Maybe there was logic in the move, but that doesn’t make it any less painful seeing No. 55 walk out the door.
0 comments:
Post a Comment