Bruins forward A.J. Greer has all the makings of a fan favorite in Boston originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
BOSTON — A.J. Greer has the potential to quickly become a fan favorite in Boston, especially if he continues to play like he did for the Bruins in Saturday night’s home opener at TD Garden.
Greer scored twice, picked up an assist, tallied four shots on net and played an exciting, physical style of hockey in Boston’s 6-3 victory over the Arizona Coyotes.
His first goal came at 12:49 of the third period and gave the Bruins a 5-3 advantage.
Greer was fired up after the goal and kissed the spoked-B on his jersey in celebration. After not being able to earn a consistent NHL role over his first five seasons between the Colorado Avalanche and New Jersey Devils, Greer is having the time of his life back in Boston, where he once played for Boston University.
“Even in the preseason, I was telling my fiancée and my parents how energetic this building is and how fun it is to play here,” Greer said. “I think playing for the Bruins is very special because it’s an Original Six team and it’s such a special organization. I’m so grateful to be in this position.
“I was kinda overwhelmed when I scored that goal and I just wanted to show my love for the Bruins and for the fans. Without them, the energy isn’t there. It was such a great building tonight. It was an awesome evening, even just getting my name introduced at the beginning, it was awesome.”
Greer plays a classic power forward-type of game. Not only can he create scoring chances, he plays with speed and physicality — constantly going to the tough areas of the ice and trying to make plays. He’s had good chemistry with whoever he’s played alongside during the preseason and the first two games of the regular season.
The Bruins’ bottom six, through two games, has shown tremendous improvement over last season. Greer is a major reason for that early turnaround. Now the challenge for him is producing offensively on a consistent basis.
Here are some other notes from Bruins-Coyotes.
—The Bruins extended their win streak over the Coyotes to 19 games. Arizona’s last win over Boston came on Oct. 9, 2010 when these teams played in Prague, Czech Republic to begin the 2010-11 season.
–Bruins defenseman Brandon Carlo left the game in the first period and was later ruled out with an upper body injury. Coyotes forward Liam O’Brien laid a heavy hit on Carlo along the boards in the Bruins’ zone in the opening period. Carlo’s head appeared to hit the glass as a result of the hit. He has suffered multiple concussions in his NHL career, although it should be noted the team has not officially labeled this injury as a concussion (as of this writing).
Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery did not have a further update on Carlo after Boston’s win.
If Carlo misses any games, the next man up on the blue line likely will be Anton Stralman. The 36-year-old defenseman had an impressive training camp after signing a PTO deal with the B’s. He signed a one-year deal with Boston earlier this week.
Carlo has been paired with Hampus Lindholm to begin the season. Stralman and Lindholm played alongside each other a bit during the preseason and played well at both ends of the ice. It makes sense to reunite them in Carlo’s absence — if he misses any time.
–Trent Frederic was a healthy scratch in the season opener but got in the lineup at third-line left wing Saturday night. He picked up the primary assist on Charlie Coyle’s goal late in the first period that put Boston up 2-0.
This is an important year for Frederic. He didn’t meet expectations last season. Bruins president Cam Neely even admitted at Media Day earlier this week that Frederic “didn’t have the (training) camp he wanted, we wanted.”
The Bruins have better depth this season than in years past, particularly in the bottom six. If Frederic doesn’t make an impact with his physicality and doesn’t provide much scoring, the Bruins have options to replace him in the lineup. Marc McLaughlin, Jakub Lauko, Jack Studnicka and Fabian Lysell are among the potential replacements for Frederic if he struggles consistently.
Saturday’s performance was a good first step for Frederic in trying to earn a regular spot in the lineup. Not only did he pick up an assist, he also fought O’Brien in the second period. O’Brien, as mentioned above, knocked Carlo out of the game with a hard hit in the first period.
“I loved Trent Frederic’s response, going out there and being physical and being aggressive in the right spots,” Montgomery said.
–Montgomery got a win in his first home game as Bruins head coach. He very much enjoyed the Garden playing “I’m Shipping Up to Boston” by the Dropkick Murphys, but he couldn’t remember the name of the song or band in his postgame press conference.
“I got to tell you, when they played — I don’t know when it was — I forget the name of the band, the Boston song. That was awesome. I got some goosebumps behind the bench.”
Montgomery also was appreciative of the loud ovation he received before the game when the coaching staff was introduced.
“It was really nice, very much appreciated,” he said.
— The NBA won’t be the only league where a bunch of teams might choose to tank during the 2022-23 season. The NHL could see its fair share of teams racing to the bottom with the hopes of winning the draft lottery and earning the right to select highly touted prospect Connor Bedard. The Canadian center is considered by quite a few scouts as the best prospect since Edmonton Oilers superstar Connor McDavid.
One team that figures to be in the mix for Bedard all season is the Coyotes. Arizona has arguably the worst roster in the league and no incentive to win games as it continues rebuilding. The Coyotes have lost their first two games by a combined score of 12-5. They finished with the second-worst record (55 points) last season and got the No. 3 pick in the lottery despite having the second-best odds at the top selection. If there’s a year to be lucky, it’s 2023.
