Bryson skated a season-high 24:10 against the New York Islanders on Tuesday, his fifth NHL game. The 23-year-old defenseman has continued to exude confidence not only with his willingness to join the rush, but with his poise under pressure in his own end.
"Whether it's on retrievals on our end, when he's trying to solve pressure or when he's at the blue line and he's getting a winger closing on him extremely quickly, he's so calm and cool," Krueger said. "He's got his head up all the time and makes the right decision.
"We're extremely pleased with his puck management. The same thing is going on without the puck. Whenever there is a transition of any sort, we lose possession, he is able to read his gaps and take those gaps really quickly and also in the D zone he always falls back to the good ice and works from there without really any sort of panic."
Poise, mobility, and an ability to move the puck were the traits coaches and teammates used to describe Bryson during his NCAA career at Providence College. In three collegiate seasons, Bryson developed into an all-situations player who co-captained the Friars to the Frozen Four in Buffalo.
He admits to having felt nervousness at the start of last season, his first as a pro in Rochester. He played 44 consecutive games for the Amerks before being scratched for a January contest in Cleveland. He tallied 16 points in 21 games from that point on, including all four of his goals. Any nervousness was gone by the time he made his NHL debut in New Jersey.
"When I watched that game up top I got better and better," he said. "I just tried to carry that into this year and keep my feet running. I think I've done a good job. … I'm just trying to keep that confidence, gain more every day."