It's no secret the Boston Bruins need to begin incorporating some new blood into the mix this season.
This is a team that's relied a lot on veterans over the last 10 years. Sure, they've drafted some good players who have become NHL regulars, such as Charlie McAvoy, David Pastrnak and Jeremy Swayman, but many of the other top teams have done a better job drafting and developing. Young players also cost less against the salary cap than veterans, which is another advantage of drafting well.
John Beecher is one prospect with a pretty good chance of cracking the Opening Night lineup with a good training camp and preseason. On-ice practices at camp began Thursday, and the 2019 first-round draft pick skated on the fourth line alongside Milan Lucic and Jakub Lauko in the first session of the day.
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"It was good," Beecher told reporters Thursday when asked about his Day 1 linemates. "First day, just trying to get up and down the ice, but I thought we were moving the puck well and making some plays. Playing with a guy like Looch is pretty cool on the first day of camp. It was fun."
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It was interesting to see Beecher in this role on Day 1 because the Bruins need a new fourth-line center after Tomas Nosek was not re-signed in free agency. Beecher is a top candidate for this spot in the lineup. He has good size (6-foot-3, 215 pounds), skates well, kills penalties and plays a physical two-way game. His primary competition for the job likely is newly signed veteran Patrick Brown.
Is earning the fourth-line center spot a goal for Beecher over the next few weeks?
"Absolutely," he said. "I think everyone at camp is fighting for a spot. I think if I'm going to contribute to the team this year and help them, that's probably where I'm going to do the best. It's not a role I have any problem playing.
“I’ve played on so many high-powered offenses — you look back at my time at USA and then over at Michigan, always kind of playing that power forward role, being heavy, being hard to play against in the D-zone. Definitely something I take a lot of pride in.”
Bruins training camps in recent years didn't feature a ton of open roster spots. Given the roster turnover that happened over the offseason, that's no longer the case right now.
Plenty of roles are up for grabs, and it'll create lots of competition internally between the veterans and the young players trying to make a name for themselves.
"It's exciting," Beecher said. "At the end of the day, it's just head down and try to do your best. I don't want to think too far ahead or what's in front of you. Just show up everyday and do what they want to see, and see what happens."