With Tomas Nosek officially finding his new home, the Boston Bruins now need to decide who their fourth-line center will be next season. Thankfully for them, they have a handful of candidates who could be solid choices for the 4C role. Let’s discuss each of them now.
John Beecher
John Beecher could be viewed as a dark horse candidate for the fourth-line center role. The 2019 first-round pick just completed his first full professional season, posting nine goals and 23 points in 61 games played with the Providence Bruins. Those stats in the American Hockey League (AHL) are not particularly impressive, but his physicality and defensive play could warrant him some consideration for an NHL spot this season.
Ultimately, Beecher will need to have a strong camp for him to make Boston’s roster. There appear to be other players ahead of him on their depth chart, but when noting that he is now 22 years old and a former first-rounder, one has to wonder if Boston will give him his first chance in the NHL sooner rather than later. Yet, at this juncture, I view his chances being the lowest of all the players who will be discussed in this list.
Marc McLaughlin
Marc McLaughlin is an AHL forward who should be watched very closely at camp. After a strong preseason last year, many believed that the 23-year-old would make the NHL club, but that did not come to fruition. However, with Nosek and other bottom-six forwards leaving Boston this summer, McLaughlin will be competing for an NHL job again this time around.
After posting three goals in 11 games for the Bruins in 2021-22, McLaughlin only made three appearances for the Bruins this past season, where he had zero points. He put together a solid season in Providence, however, as he had 13 goals and 30 points in 66 games.
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When noting that McLaughlin plays a steady two-way game and has shown promise at the NHL level previously, he should get some serious consideration to make the Bruins’ roster. He also can play the wing, so that will help his chances of making the team, even if he is not their 4C.
Jesper Boqvist
The Bruins brought in a solid bottom-six option when they signed Jesper Boqvist to a one-year, $775,000 contract. The 24-year-old spent this past season with the New Jersey Devils, posting 10 goals and 21 points in 70 games. Yet, he also had more offensive success just the year before, as he had 23 points in just 56 games. As a result of this, he is a bounce-back candidate heading into the new year, but will he be Boston’s 4C?
Boqvist will be a nice player to have around, as he can play all three forward positions. As a result of this, I think he will have a home in Boston’s bottom six, but the real question is what position he will play. A major obstacle working against him being a center is that he has won just 36.2% of his faceoff draws over the last four seasons. As a result, this could lead Jim Montgomery to play him on the wing.
Patrick Brown
Patrick Brown is another free-agent addition who will be fighting for the 4C role. The 31-year-old spent this past season split between the Philadelphia Flyers and Ottawa Senators, where he posted four goals and 12 points. Although he was not dominant offensively, he made a massive impact with physicality, as his 167 hits effectively show. This element of his game mixed with his steady defensive play will help his chances of being a regular in Boston’s lineup.
Another thing that will bolster Brown’s chances of being the club’s 4C is that he has had success at the faceoff dot. This past season he won 52.5% of his draws and was victorious in 58.5% of them the season prior with the Flyers. This and his high-energy style of play could be what leads to the Michigan native earning the 4C role this fall.
Alas, it will be interesting to see who wins the 4C role for this upcoming season. Brown seems to have the best odds, but we should not rule out the prospects or Boqvist. No matter the case, they will have big shoes to fill replacing Nosek.
