Sweeney: 'DeBrusk Has Chance to Expand Game'

BostonBruins.com- It has been a year unlike any other and, likewise, an offseason unlike any the NHL has ever had to maneuver. The uncertainty about what lies ahead, both from a hockey perspective and an economic standpoint, has caused players and teams to proceed cautiously when it comes to contracts and transactions.
So, while it may have taken a bit longer than he would have liked, Don Sweeney was quite pleased on Monday evening to announce that the Bruins had signed restricted free agent Jake DeBrusk to a two-year contract worth an annual cap hit of $3.675 million.

"We all understand what the challenge is in regards to the cap, and where we were this time last year, we'll call it, versus where we are now - and then forecasting going forward," Sweeney said during a virtual press conference. "I think we all have to realize that things just don't work in a linear fashion and you have to prepare accordingly. And some teams will have to make some judgement decisions, internal decisions, and the lineups and rosters will change accordingly.
"But we're very appreciative of being able to have a really good young player who has been a very productive player for us, and really has a new platform going forward for him to take things as far as he wants."
Sweeney acknowledged that where the pandemic-related challenges really came into play was the term of the contract. Ideally, he explained, a longer-term deal would have been the goal from the team's perspective but with the salary cap and overall financial flexibility of the league set to be limited for at least the next two years, a shorter contract made more sense.
"The landscape is just…there are a lot of unknowns associated with where we're going in the immediate future - and hopefully things, with all the positive news associated with vaccines and a hopeful climate that could potentially exist, that we get back on track," said Sweeney. "But we had some ground to cover and I think that was part of the discussions this time around with Jake and [his agent] Rick [Vallette] and realizing that we explored a longer-term deal. And it's probably on me that it didn't come to fruition. We focused on a shorter term given the landscape and the uncertainty.
"We had initial talks as we did with Brandon [Carlo] and Charlie [McAvoy] and young players we think are part of our future, our core, that we'll look to try and do longer term and sometimes it just doesn't work. And in this case, I think a little of the unknown landscape had me pivot back to shorter-term to allow us flexibility now and then moving forward.
"And obviously allowing Jake…his ability to take it to another level with a little more certainty as to where things may head financially with the league. I think at this point in time, two years felt like the right number, and we're fortunate that Rick and Jake saw the common ground and were happy to get it done. He's really being recognized at the top of that peer group of his comparables and we're happy to put him there."

DeBrusk is set to enter his fourth NHL campaign whenever the 2020-21 season should commence and will be looking to continue his development into a bona fide second-line winger. For much of his three-year career in Black & Gold, the 24-year-old has ridden alongside David Krejci on Boston's second line, twice reaching the 40-point plateau.
He approached the 30-goal mark in 2018-19, notching a career-high 27 during Boston's Stanley Cup Final season, and was en route to his second consecutive 20-goal output when last season was cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Edmonton native finished the 2019-20 season with 19 goals and 35 points in 65 games, slightly behind his production from the previous year when he collected 42 points in 68 games - which was one off his career high of 43 points during his 70-game rookie season in 2017-18.
With his numbers dipping slightly each of the last two seasons, Sweeney believes there is room for improvement for a player that he believes is already among the best in his peer group.
"I think Jake has a chance to continue to expand his game," said Sweeney. "He has an innate ability to score goals. Some guys take three chances, Jake might only take one…he can finish. I think that's been proven over the course of his career so far. For the speed Jake brings to the table, there's no reason why Jake can't kill penalties. There's no reason that Jake can't be an even better net-front presence this year, where he scored a bunch of goals this year but also missed opportunities. That's that inside presence, that ability to get inside the dots with consistency, being a little more of a threat on a forecheck as an F1."
Sweeney went on to say that consistency across an 82-game schedule - though that slate will likely be limited this season - and into the postseason will be crucial to DeBrusk when it comes to reaching his highest potential.
"He's been consistently productive," said Sweeney. "Not to be contradicting myself in that regard…I just think there are stretches where if Jake finds a level that he's capable of, affecting the game in a two-way component, we might not walk out of the game and think, 'Well, Jake didn't score tonight, he's in a slump.' I don't think it's all about that. The puck doesn't go in at times, and all goal scorers go through that.
"I think Jake has an opportunity to impact a game in a lot of different ways. We all want to help him, the coaches included. Jake himself wants to recognize it and be that impactful player over the course of an entire 60 minutes as well as on the scoresheet. His numbers speak to the fact that he's had consistent production."
DeBrusk has already played 203 career games in the NHL on top of another 49 in the postseason, including Boston's run to the 2019 Stanley Cup Final and two other trips to the second round. With so much experience already on his resume, the former first-round pick is set to transition from one of the Bruins' brightest young stars to a critical part of the team's core.
"He's had a heck of a lot of experience now, he's had a heck of a lot of success, and I think there is another level or two for Jake to get to and we want to help him realize that, and be part of the core of our group for years to come," said Sweeney. "I do believe Jake has a chance to have more of a breakout impact, in a two-way fashion of the game as opposed to just that reliance of scoring the big goals…he's capable of impacting a game in a lot of different ways.
"He's had a lot of time with a high-level player like David Krejci, developed some chemistry. Bounced back and forth a little bit with Charlie Coyle…you saw him take over games a couple years ago, in particular in Toronto. He scored an enormous goal for us coming down the off wing in a game in Carolina in the playoffs this year. He has those abilities, and few players do.
"With his speed and his ability to drive play in all three zones, I think Jake should recognize that he has at least one more, if not two more levels to get to."

Not Much Doing

Sweeney did not have much of an update on where things stand with Zdeno Chara, who remains an unrestricted free agent. The two sides are in communication but Chara is still awaiting more information on the upcoming season before making a final decision.
"Same status quo there," said Sweeney. "Waiting to re-connect with [agent] Matt [Keator] and Zdeno. Zee continues to evaluate what the landscape of the league looks like and we'll see where it goes. We've had constant communication and hopefully we've got a target date here at some point in the near future and we'll see what the league determines."