Brett Connolly Scouting Report From Joe Smith Of The Tampa Bay Times
BOSTON (CBS) - The Boston Bruins burned the midnight oil and swung a deal late Sunday night/early Monday morning.
The Bruins acquired forward Brett Connolly from the Tampa Bay Lightning in exchange for two second-round picks. The picks are for the 2015 and 2016 NHL drafts.
For more on Connolly, 98.5 The Sports Hub's Zolak & Bertrand welcomed in Joe Smith from the Tampa Bay Times to hear his scouting report on what kind of player the Bruins are getting.
Connolly was drafted No. 6 overall in the 2010 draft and was making just $850,000 this year for Tampa, so Beetle was curious why the Lightning would trade a player like that.
"Brett's taken an interesting road. He played a lot as a rookie; probably more than he was ready for. He was up and down [early on] and right now I think he's kind of coming into his own a little bit in the second half of the year. He's really bought into the bottom-six role, and he's really bought into the physical aspect and has a little more bite to his game, playing with an edge. I think he's rounding out his game, and that should be a value to the Boston Bruins."
Coach Claude Julien's system is not known for churning out 30-goal scorers, so whatever offensive potential Connolly has could be limited with the Bruins.
However, Joe Smith doesn't think Connolly will have a hard transition to make playing Julien's defensive style.
"I'm sure it will be a different system than what he's used to in Tampa. There's obviously structure here, but they play with speed and skill, getting the puck in deep and chasing, so I think it might be an adjustment here at first. He's a guy that's been able to adapt his game a little bit now here, and trust me this guy can still score. Give him the puck in the slot and he can really fire his shot."
Smith adds that Connolly is a good locker room guy and is a respected player in the room. For what it's worth, Connolly appears excited for the change of scenery:
Can't express how excited I am for the opportunity to join the @NHLBruins. Looking forward to getting to Boston.
— Brett Connolly (@bconnolly8) March 2, 2015
"Connolly still has room to grow, which I think he can down the line, and it might be a good fresh start for him to get out of Tampa Bay," Smith told Zolak & Bertrand.
Connolly, 22, has 12 goals and three assists in 49 games this season, averaging 11:57 time on ice per game. In 133 career games, he has 18 goals and 14 assists. The 6-foot-2, 181-pound native of British Columbia is a right shot right wing, an area of need which the Bruins were expected to target at the deadline.
Listen below for the full scouting report:
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