Bergeron decision on retirement to set course for Bruins offseason plans

BOSTON -- For the Boston Bruins, everything flows from one question.

Will Patrice Bergeron return or retire?
That decision solely is in the hands of Bergeron, the Bruins captain and No. 1 center. He said Wednesday that he would be taking time to evaluate his future with his family, figuring out whether he might have the desire to come back for his 19th NHL season, all of them in Boston.
His choice will determine the next course of action for the Bruins.
One thing is settled, it seems: General manager Don Sweeney will return for his eighth season. Bruins president Cam Neely said he intends to finalize a contract with Sweeney in the near future.
But the status of coach Bruce Cassidy, who finished his sixth season, appears less certain.
Neely said he has yet to talk through Cassidy's status with Sweeney, who will have the ultimate call on the coach's job. Since Cassidy replaced Claude Julien on Feb. 7, 2017, the Bruins have a .672 points percentage (245-108-46), second only to the Tampa Bay Lightning (.698).
"I think we have to look at making some changes as far as how we play and the way we do some of the things," Neely said Thursday. "I think Bruce is a fantastic coach. He's brought a lot of success to this organization. I like him as a coach. We'll see where it goes. But I do think we need to make some changes."
The question is how deep those will changes go.
The Bruins were not happy with their finish this season. They believed they could defeat the Carolina Hurricanes and move on to the Eastern Conference Second Round and beyond. Forward Brad Marchand said the Bruins thought that had they eliminated the Hurricanes, they could have reached at least the Eastern Conference Final.
But the Bruins lost Game 7 at Carolina, a third straight season when they did not make it past the second round after losing Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final to the St. Louis Blues in 2019.
Speaking about Bruins ownership, Neely said, "They're disappointed, and rightfully so."
So if Bergeron doesn't return, would the Bruins consider a rebuild?
"I've been looking at that for a while now," Neely said. "As your core players and your better players are starting to age out, you do have to look at that, there's no question. But we do have some good young players in this lineup that hopefully continue to grow and hopefully we can add to that.
"But it is something you think about."
Would the fans accept that?
"I don't think anybody really wants to watch losing hockey and that's not the plan, is to start losing," Neely said. "You look at teams across the League that have lost a lot of hockey games over the number of years and they are in rebuilds and they get better draft picks and, ultimately, better players.
"I think we've done a pretty good job the last 10, 11 years of trying to stay in that window to win.
"Eventually it does catch up to you. But we do have some good young players in this lineup that hopefully we can build around in the next couple of years so we don't have to do a complete rebuild."
As Neely said, the Bruins have some building blocks in place. They got a good rookie season out of Jeremy Swayman and seem to believe in him as their goalie of the post-
Tuukka Rask
era. Swayman and Linus Ullmark have the position locked down.
Their corps of defensemen is solid too. They have what could be one of the best top defense pairs in the NHL in Charlie McAvoy and Hampus Lindholm, one that should get better with a full season together. Each is signed through 2029-30.
Their offense? That's where the issues come in. The Bruins still are lamenting the missed opportunity from the 2015 NHL Draft, when they had the Nos. 13-15 picks and selected defenseman Jakub Zboril and forwards Jake DeBrusk and
Zach Senyshyn
; the players picked at Nos. 16-18 were forwards Mathew Barzal (New York Islanders) and Kyle Connor (Winnipeg Jets), and defenseman Thomas Chabot (Ottawa Senators). Also, forward David Pastrnak is heading into the final season of his contract. Neely has been frustrated by the Bruins' inability to be more creative on the power play, and everyone in the organization acknowledges that 5-on-5 offense has not been good enough.
And then there's the center problem.
They do not have a replacement for Bergeron in the organization. Their best center options on the roster are Charlie Coyle, Erik Haula and prospect Jack Studnicka, and there have been draft picks sacrificed to maintain the team's status. The Bruins don't have a first-round pick in the 2022 NHL Draft and don't have a second-round pick in the 2023 NHL Draft or 2024 NHL Draft.
It is a major concern.
"You could look at plans B and C and such, but let's be honest, you don't replace that type of player and what he means to our organization," Sweeney said of Bergeron. "That might take years to replace that player in that sense."
The Bruins have gone through years of such departures, among them defensemen Zdeno Chara and Torey Krug, forward
David Krejci
and Rask.
Bergeron is next, whether it's this offseason or beyond. The organization waits, with bated breath.
"I think it would be challenging to have the year that we had without a Bergeron," Neely said. "It's tough to find a Bergeron. Hopefully he does come back. But if he doesn't, we've got to go to work."