The Holidays are upon us, and as we all are finishing our shopping, traveling to see relatives, and preparing to cook our biggest meal of the season, we all have that special wish list this holiday season. The same can be said for professional sports teams. While Sanat may not be able to deliver on all of these Wishlist items, the Bruins would certainly welcome them as we hit the second two-thirds of the season. So what are the Bruins asking for this season?
1. Health- Not at uncommon thing for you to wish for your health around the holidays but the Bruins are hoping the injury bug leaves them alone for the remainder of the season. They have already lost Top Defenseman Charlie McAvoy for eight games and was clearly rusty in last night's game against the Jets. Matt Grzelcyk, another defenseman did not travel on the current road trip with an upper body injury after missing 10 games in November as well. They also just got back Pavel Zacha who is a top six forward. The key for this team to stay able to compete is they need their star players on the ice.
2. A top 4 Defenseman- Now the trade deadline is still two and half months away, but the best GMs are always looking for ways to improve their team. If the last few games are any indication of how the Bruins Defense is going to play, some defensive help could be very high on their list. With teams not out of contention yet, you don't know what stars will be available come March 8th, but some very sturdy D-Men are already on the trade block. Names that come to mind are Chris Tanev and Noah Hanifin (CGY), Nick Seeler and Sean Walker have had a great start for the surprising Flyers this year but GM Daniel Briere insists they are still in rebuild status.
3. Offense, Offense, Offense. Let's face it, every fan base would love to see their team score six goals a game. The Bruins already have some tremendous offensive players in David Pastrnak, Brad Marchand and Pavel Zacha. If Jake Debrusk could find his scoring touch again, this lineup has a potential to reach the same height and beyond of last year. However, there are some interesting options at forward come March 8th and possibly sooner. One that is the worst kept secret is Elias Lindholm out of Calgary where it is all but certain he will be dealt, just wondering where? Another intriguing name is Steven Stamkos. It's common knowledge that Stamkos is unhappy that contract talks have not made any progress this year and Tampa Bay seems content to let that continue, could Boston really swoop in and steal Stamkos?
These are just a few things, on the Bruins list, I'm sure the Goaltending continuing to dominate would be up there as well. Will Santa be nice to the Bruins this year?
