A big buildup to these cuts

Depth made Bruins' decisions tougher

By Fluto Shinzawa, Globe Staff  |  October 8, 2008

WILMINGTON - As a hectic training camp unfolded (the Bruins skated in four states, three provinces, and one district), the central issue wasn't how the club would build on the successes of 2007-08.

It was who would make the team.

But that's the kind of issue general manager Peter Chiarelli wanted to have as he enters his third season at the helm of the Bruins. Since the drop of the puck on the new NHL, the Bruins have been a stride behind the rest of the league in building depth and having talent in place to make team-building decisions a challenge.

Now, as 2008-09 is ready to open for the Bruins, it looks as though they have caught up to the competition.

"We've had these difficult decisions," said Chiarelli after yesterday's practice at Ristuccia Arena. "In my years here, we've never had those. We do have depth. We have teams calling about these players. Organizationally, we're in a good spot."

Chiarelli's toughest call was biting the bullet on Peter Schaefer, the underperforming left wing with the $2.1 million annual cap hit. After not receiving any bites to his liking on the trade market, Chiarelli placed Schaefer on waivers yesterday. And with Schaefer unlikely to be claimed before today's noon deadline, his hit will come off Boston's cap, but the Bruins will have to eat his contract.

No organization likes to pay NHL money to players who aren't on the big-league roster. But Chiarelli's disappointment was tempered by the emergence of first-year pro Blake Wheeler, who claimed Schaefer's job.

Wheeler, the fifth overall pick by the Coyotes in 2004, became a free agent when he declined to sign with Phoenix. The Bruins beat out at least three other Eastern Conference clubs and signed Wheeler to a two-year entry-level contract without giving up assets.

Wheeler, 22, becomes the second young forward to open eyes in Boston's training camp. Last season, Milan Lucic, expected to return to junior hockey, forced the Bruins to make a roster spot for him.

"We're going to take it slowly," Chiarelli said. "I liken him a little bit to Looch last year. [Wheeler] is a few years older. But I want him to continue working hard, continue practicing hard, and we hope to see a progression. Because the level of play picks up now."

By replacing Schaefer with Wheeler, the Bruins continue their makeover into a team that plays big up front and emphasizes tight defense in back, with solid goaltending from Tim Thomas and Manny Fernandez.

"We look more like the team we're trying to be, especially in the last game," said coach Claude Julien, referring to Sunday's 5-4 shootout victory over Washington, which closed out the exhibition season. "We got closer to being the team we're going to start with.

"It certainly clarified a lot of things. We still want to be stingy defensively. That's an area we can certainly improve on at the start. Offensively, we've scored more than we did last year at this stage. So hopefully that will be an added dimension to our team.

"We still have to be a hard team to play against. It's the work ethic but it's also about being really stingy, not giving other teams much, and eventually they get frustrated. We've got to continue that part of our game, and hopefully at the other end, being a little better."

Like most teams, the Bruins have questions entering tomorrow night's season opener at Colorado.

Can Fernandez, more than a year removed from healthy NHL play, reclaim his game in a contract year?

Will Michael Ryder justify his three-year, $12 million contract and become the club's sharpshooter?

Will Patrice Bergeron rebound from last year's injury nightmare and become a dependable, two-way force?

Can Phil Kessel make the most of his top-six role and turn into a go-to offensive weapon?

Will Zdeno Chara overcome offseason shoulder surgery and play like a Norris Trophy finalist again?

Obviously, the answers will come in time. But the game plan is to assemble enough depth that even if the aforementioned players stumble, the club has alternatives.

Thomas, an All-Star last season, has proven he's a sturdy No. 1 goalie. Chuck Kobasew is coming off a career-high 22-goal season and could play a bigger offensive role. David Krejci has shown flashes of being a top-two center. Wheeler is looking to climb the depth chart and fill a top-six slot. And Mark Stuart, an alternate captain for Team USA in the 2008 World Championships, is taking steps to becoming a shutdown defenseman.

"I think we can go as far as we believe we can go," said Julien. "We've got a good team here that I know will compete against any team in the NHL. There's no doubt about that."

Fluto Shinzawa can be reached at fshinzawa@globe.com.