It is always fun to make bold predictions. For the Boston Bruins, there were plenty of bold predictions to go around. There’s a reason why they were bold and now it’s time to revisit these bold predations, as the 2024 door is closed and the 2025 door is open.
Elias Lindholm Replicating His Career Year… Not So Fast
Elias Lindholm was one of the big-ticket free-agent signings general manager Don Sweeney made this summer. The move allowed the Bruins to have stronger depth down the middle. Lindholm, Charlie Coyle, and Pavel Zacha is a nice trio to have down the middle of the ice. (although has spent time on the wing next to Lindholm and it’s worked out tremendously.) Lindholm was not to come in and be the savior, but expectations were for first-line-center-caliber performances. The original prediction was for Lindholm to replicate his career-best season (2021-22), which was a point-per-game player and a Frank J. Selke Trophy finalist.
He is nowhere near a point-per-game pace as in 39 games played, he has six goals and 19 points. He started the season strong, having five points in the first three games. He then went pointless in seven games and did not score a goal in over a month. The production has been streaky, but he did take a good turn to end the month of December with six points in seven games. The new-look line of Lindholm, Coyle, and Brad Marchand has been a treat to watch.
Lindholm has excelled in the faceoff dot, winning 55.5% of his draws. He does do the little things right, but the replication of his career-best season isn’t going to age well.
The Bruins’ New-Look Goalie Tandem Not as Strong
The original bold prediction was that the 2024-25 goalie tandem would be as good as the last one. This is not to say that the Bruins miss Linus Ullmark, as he did not start the season strong but managed to turn things around prior to his injury, however, things have been inconsistent in the crease.
Related: 4 Bold Bruins Predictions for 2024-25
Joonas Korpisalo has been a pleasant surprise and a bright spot after a brutal 2023-24 season. Aside from the lopsided 6-1 defeat on opening night to the Florida Panthers and the 6-2 defeat to the Columbus Blue Jackets, Korpisalo has given the Bruins a chance to win every single night. There’s a case to be made he has been better than Jeremy Swayman.
Overall though, the Bruins’ goaltending has been subpar. They rank 24th in save percentage (.887). Ullmark and Swayman were ninth in 2021-22, first, in 2022-23, and third in 2023-24. Korpisalo’s goals against average is 2.71 and Swayman’s is 2.90. (When it comes to goals saved above expected, Korpisalo sits at 0.6, which is as expected. As for Swayman, he is at negative-6.8, which is the 11th-worst in the league. That’s not what the Bruins envisioned after they handed him $8.25 million per season.
The Bruins sit 19th in goals against and things have taken a better turn under interim head coach Joe Sacco. For the Bruins to continue their playoff push, they need Korpisalo and Swayman and to be better down the stretch.
Trent Frederic Needs to Improve
If there is a player that the Bruins need to get going, it’s Trent Frederic. Frederic is a player who is in a contract year and all signs were pointing in the direction of him having a strong season. Frederic has only gotten better as time has gone on and he has gone on to flash his offensive game. During the 2022-23 season, Frederic set a career high in goals (17) only to beat that record in 2023-24 with 18. In thhe last two seasons, Frederic finished with a shooting percentage of 14.2 and 14.6. The upside is there in his game. But this season has been a different story.
Yes, he is shooting at 9.1%, but he five goals and 11 points in 39 games. He is only on pace for 23 points, which is good drop off from the 40 points he set last season. The expectation was for him to take steps forward and ease the pain of losing Jake DeBrusk in free agency. Furthermore, he has been floated in trade rumors and has interest from teams around the league.
The Bruins need Frederic to turn a corner in 2025, especially with them not calling up any one of Matthew Poitras, Fabian Lysell, and Georgii Merkulov.
Bruins Can Reach the Eastern Conference Final
The 2024-25 Bruins remain a mystery. They are 25th in goals scored, have a minus-16 goal differential, the power play is dead last in the league, and the penalty kill is 25th in the league. When they lose, they lose big and the goaltending also hasn’t softened the blow. Yet, they are very much in the mix for a playoff run.
This is bold and can still be an achievable feat. Reaching the Eastern Conference Final is not out of the question. Despite a tough start under former head coach Jim Montgomery, the Bruins are very much in the driver seat for the playoffs.
As for the standings, the Bruins sit third in the Atlantic Division with 44 points. They are four points out of first place, but do have the Tampa Bay Lightning and Ottawa Senators on their heels and with games in hand. The Metropolitan Division is stout with the top three teams and then there’s a significant drop off.
If the playoffs began today, they would be taking on their arch nemesis in the Panthers. The Bruins are not the same team the Panthers faced to begin the season, so it’ll be a great test to see how they truly stack up against them. The Eastern Conference still remains wide open, but we are beginning to learn which teams are a true threat and which are not. If the Bruins can get into the dance, anything is possible.
Bold Predictions Update
These bold predictions have not gone nearly as planned when originally making them. Lindholm has been good for the Bruins, but a replication of his career-best season is likely not going to happen. The goalie tandem certainly needs to turn things around and if Frederic and the goal-scoring in general woke up, the team would be much more dangerous than they already are. Let’s see if there’s a turnaround to these predictions.
