More on Bruins newb Drew Stafford
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The B’s got a new guy at the deadline so you can pretty much bet a million dollars on them to win the Stanley Cup now — if you think they are going to win the Stanley Cup, that is.
But if you’re a level-headed human being with realistic expectations for the team, you might want to cool those down a little. Sure, they’re equipped well for the postseason — a time of the year when you only have to play one goaltender — but it’ll be up to you to decide if their latest move was a good enough one to put them over the top here.
By now, you must know the Bruins got right wing Drew Stafford from the Winnipeg Jets in exchange for a conditional 2018 6th round pick.
This year, he has 13 points through 40 games, but it was clear he just wasn’t working up in Canada. Why? The dude was playing like eight minutes per game or something. But — at times in his career — he’s been far from a fourth liner. Like pretty much the exact opposite, dawg.
In 78 games last year he put up 38 points (21 goals, 17 assists) and if you go back to the 2010-2011 season — when he was a Buffalo Sabre — he had 52 points (31 goals, 21 assists) in 61 games. Sure, he’s probably not the Stafford of 5-6 years ago, but the maybe he can regain last year’s form if he actually sees some ice time.
Think about it this way: the Bruins used a third round pick to get Zac Rinaldo, who might be the only player to ever be suspended in both the NHL and AHL at the same time. A sixth round pick for a proven, yet inconsistent and injury-prone, NHLer ain’t bad.
So yeah, his injury history is definitely a concern. But you also have to wonder how a right winger will fit in Massachusetts…