David Krejci’s 2016-17 was frustrating, but productive

Evaluation:

David Krejci is a known quantity, which means a lot of things are very clear about his game.

When he is on his game, there are few players who can not just create time and space, there are even fewer who can take the time and space given to him by opposing defenses and make it look like he might as well have had open ice in front of him. His ability to make insane passes that result in goals is something the NHL is still not ready for. His shot is continually the most deceptive in the league and frequently catches goaltenders looking like AHL backups. And of course, when it comes to Krejci scoring, it matters not if you move to face the shot and shut a part of the goal out, the fact is you moved at all, and he exploits that motion for all it’s worth.

But of course, that’s when David Krejci is on his game.

There’s a lot about Krejci that is frustrating, which are also well known at this point.

Krejci is not that great of a defensive player, and has often needed wingers who could make up for his defensive miscues and stay above even in terms of shots getting to the goaltender. He has a tendency to either have shifts where he’s having real trouble entering the zone with the puck, and whose tendency to pass first has often cost Boston a primo chance to score, and has a worrying tendency to go cold for stretches at a time...if he’s not injured in the interim.

This was not helped this year by the fact that the wingers for Krejci this year was a rotating cast of players that featured either Backes (who is not a defensive player), Pastrnak (A good, but not that great of a defensive player), and a horde of different players at left wing, all of whom might be good teammates for scoring, but in shift to shift play it became clear that they could not mask the problems Krejci has on the backcheck. In some ways, Krejci’s limitations were never more on display than they were this year.

However, Krejci also managed to have one of his most productive years as a goalscorer since 2011, and had his 4th most productive point getting year as a Bruin, third highest in points on the team, all off the back of an 82 game season, one of a select few times in his career that he’s been able to finish the entire year. Which would have been an encouraging sign for those worried about his health...

Aaaand then he got injured 3 games into the Ottawa series, finishing the playoffs without a point. And it was here where his value to was painfully clear, also Bruce refused to acknowledge that he had a center at the wing that could probably replace him but whatever as the Bruins found the hole in their center depth too big to overcome and it became a nail in the postseason coffin for them, as most of the replacements in the lineup couldn’t handle the minutes usually logged by Krejci and the drive he brought night in, night out.

Thankfully, Krejci has an entire offseason to recover, and hopefully a strong camp by some of the younger lads next year might finally make the lineup much more stable than it was this year for him.

Grade: A-

David Krejci’s positive and negatives are something you should be aware of at this point. There’s little about his game this year that challenged most people’s assertions of him, but his results should speak for themselves. Once again one of the better forwards on the team, once again a point leader even on a team that had trouble scoring, and whose overall value was sorely missed in the postseason. Here’s hoping the rest of his early 30’s can be this productive!

Stats:

Age: 31

Games Played:

Goals: 23

Assists: 31

Points: 54

Playoff Points: N/A

Shooting-%: 7.27%

Regular Season CF%: 53.45%