Bruins
The Bruins have no shortage of deserving candidates for the 7th Player Award this season.
Bruins fans have their work cut out for them this spring when it comes to voting on the team’s 7th Player Award — given annually to the player who exceeded expectations during the regular season.
It’s often a grueling process when it comes to picking out just one player who went above and beyond over an 82-game season, helping Boston’s franchise stars pull on the rope and put the club over the top.
And with several under-the-radar signings punching above their weight on this revamped roster, there are no shortage of deserving candidates in 2023-24.
Here’s our ranking of the top contenders for the 2023-24 7th Player Award in a crowded field.
10. Pavel Zacha
Zacha’s role as a top-six stalwart might hurt his candidacy, considering that the 7th Player Award is usually doled out to bottom-six contributors or other overlooked role players. But Zacha does deserve a stick tap for holding his own in his first full season as a top-six center for Boston.
Even with a lull in the middle of the season, Zacha has continued to spark chemistry alongside his fellow countryman David Pastrnak. After setting a new career-high last season with 57 points (21 goals, 36 assists), the 27-year-old forward is on pace to surpass that mark with 56 points over 74 games. He’s also been strong at faceoffs this season at 54.9 percent.
9. Charlie Coyle
Much like Zacha, Coyle’s role as a top-six pivot does hamper his odds a bit when it comes to the 7th Player Award. Still, the 32-year-old forward deserves plenty of credit for exceeding expectations after getting handed the unenviable task of replacing Patrice Bergeron on Boston’s top line.
A dependable workhorse who is averaging the most shorthanded ice time per game (2:32) among Bruins forwards, Coyle has set a new career-high in both goals scored (25) and total points (58) already this year.
8. Kevin Shattenkirk
Even though he’s slotted in and out of the lineup this season, the veteran defenseman has been as advertised as a puck-moving presence on the blue line. In 58 games, Shattenkirk has scored five goals and posted 22 points — impressing during his reps on Boston’s second power-play unit. A solid pick-up last summer, considering his $1,050,000 cap hit.
7. Jesper Boqvist
The latest unsung hero to step up for the Bruins during Saturday’s OT win over Florida, Boqvist has gone from a cast-off by the Devils to a dependable bottom-six spark plug for Boston.
Boqvist’s speed and scoring touch has been a welcome add to the Bruins’ depth chart, with the 25-year-old forward scoring six goals and posting 14 points over 43 games this season. Boqvist could be in line for third-line reps down the stretch, especially if Jim Montgomery wants to keep him with a fellow speedster in Jake DeBrusk.
6. Johnny Beecher
Among the several Bruins rookies who have cut their teeth in the NHL ranks this year, Beecher has arguably been handed the most daunting assignments given his steady dose of minutes in the D-zone.
In Beecher’s 420:27 of 5v5 ice time this season, just 13.3% of his faceoffs have been set in the offensive zone. But even with plenty of taxing minutes, Beecher has established himself as a key cog on Boston’s fourth line — especially after his second call-up with Boston last month. His ability to win D-zone faceoffs (54.4%) has been key for this team down the stretch.
A fellow rookie in Justin Brazeau also deserves some credit this season, but he’s only played in 19 total games with Boston.
5. Parker Wotherspoon
Another unheralded free-agent pickup back in July, Wotherspoon has gone from an AHL regular to a dependable option on Boston’s blue line in the span of a few months. The 26-year-old plays a simple, meat-and-potatoes game — but that steady, stiff style has added some much-needed fortitude to Boston’s D corps.
Even with just 37.2% of his starts set in the offensive zone, the Bruins are outscoring teams, 26-19, during Wotherspoon’s 575:37 of 5v5 ice time this year. Fellow blueliner Andrew Peeke has also yielded strong returns playing a similar style as Wothersppon, but with just 11 games played with Boston — we’ll keep him out of the running this season.
4. James van Riemsdyk
An early frontrunner for the 7th Player Award, van Riemsdyk’s candidacy has taken a hit due to a sustained slump (one point in last 18 games). But before that scoring skid, the veteran forward scored 11 goals and 37 points over his first 51 games with Boston.
Joining the Bruins on a one-year, $1 million contract last offseason, van Riemsdyk was added in hopes of giving Boston a proven netfront playmaker on the power play. But the 34-year-old wing has done plenty of damage outside of the man advantage — with his 13 primary assists at 5v5 play tied for the second-most on the team.
3. Trent Frederic
After submitting a breakthrough season in 2022-23, Frederic has showcased this year that those previous results were not just a flash in the pan. Frederic has offered value to the Bruins over the last few seasons thanks to his underrated two-way skillset and pugnacious approach.
But the 26-year-old forward has also developed into a consistent scoring threat over the last two years — setting new career highs this season in both goals scored (18) and total points (39). Once viewed as more of a solid contributor in a bottom-six role, Frederic has developed into an effective play-driver and tone setter this season with Boston.
2. Morgan Geekie
The Bruins were thrilled when Geekie surprisingly hit the free-agent market after the Kraken chose to not extend him a qualifying offer. Despite averaging just 10:27 of ice time last season in Seattle, Geekie still posted 28 points over 69 games..
Just as the Bruins hoped, more reps (15:24 ATOI) have led to more production for Geekie in his first season with Boston. In 72 games, Geekie has set new career highs with 16 goals and 38 points — while also landing 126 hits. Signed through the 2024-25 season at an affordable $2 million annual cap hit, Geekie has meshed with just about any line he’s been slotted in on since landing with Boston.
1. Danton Heinen
The Bruins’ nominee for the 2024 Bill Masterton Trophy, Heinen went from a training camp tryout candidate to a top-six stalwart in the span of a few months. The 28-year-old forward has made the most of his second chance in Boston, earning a roster spot in the fall and establishing himself as a Swiss Army Knife in Jim Montgomery’s forward corps.
Heinen has been one of the best bargain-bin signings across the NHL this season, scoring 16 goals and 35 points while only accounting for a $775,000 cap hit. Among players with standard NHL contracts, Heinen ranks fourth in cost per point at $22,794, per CapFriendly.
While there was a reasonable expectation that a player like Geekie could thrive in Boston with a solid uptick in minutes, I don’t think many Bruins fans expected Heinen to even be on this team this winter — let alone establish himself as a top-six buzzsaw next to Pastrnak and Zacha.
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