Players Boston Bruins Should Target with No. 14 Overall Pick

The Boston Bruins will be the last non-playoff team to make a pick in the first round of the 2015 NHL draft, and right now they don't have a general manager to go up and announce the pick. The Bruins dismissed Peter Chiarelli from his post, as Sportsnet Stats noted, and there is no replacement ready to step in at this time.

One of the reasons why Boston missed the playoffs was because of injuries to Zdeno Chara and David Krejci, but they also didn't get enough from some of their top players who were healthy. The Bruins are a team that is going to enter an interesting situation, because the salary cap is going to force them to make some hard decisions. 

The Bruins should make the most of their unfortunate situation, so here are the players they should target with the No. 14 overall pick.

Pavel Zacha

Age: 18

Position: Center/Left Wing

Team: Sarnia Sting

2014-15 Stats: 16 goals; 18 assists; 34 points

Why He’d Fit Boston Bruins

Pavel Zacha is a gifted offensive forward who has a solid combination of size, speed and skill. The 2014-15 season was Zacha's first in North America, and he had spent his previous developmental years in the Czech Republic.

Zacha can play a really physical game. He was suspended during the 2014-15 season for a significant hit from behind. Despite his aggressiveness and truculent tendencies, he is suited for the elements of the game that require poise and skill—characteristics highlighted by ISS Hockey:

He is one of the better skaters in the 2015 draft, and his shot is something that could allow him to be a serious goal scorer.  Sportsnet has named Zacha a draft wild card, and if you have some free time check out the site's epic profile on the Czech forward.

Paul Bittner

Age: 18

Position: Left Wing

Team: Portland Winterhawks

2014-15 Stats: 34 goals; 37 assists; 71 points

Why He'd Fit Boston Bruins

If the Bruins are looking for someone to replace Milan Lucic in a few years, they should consider drafting Paul Bittner. Although he is thinner than Lucic, he has solid size at 6’4” and 202 pounds. Joe Yerdon of NHL.com did a profile on the 2015 prospect, and here’s what John Williams of NHL Central Scouting had to say:

"

He's going to be huge. He'll be a 220-pound guy. He's a smooth skater, really good hands and [can] make plays and good in tight along the wall. He protects the puck well and can retrieve pucks on the forecheck and obviously at that size the fact he's able to do those things, that's what people like.

He's not a power forward in the classic sense of 200 penalty minutes. With his size and strength and reach, he's tough to handle.

"

Bittner had a solid season with the Winterhawks, and when you consider his offensive upside, physicality and demeanor, he has the makings of a prototypical Boston Bruin.

Evgeny Svechnikov

Age: 18

Position: Left winger

Team: Cape Breton Screaming Eagles

2014-15 Season:  32 goals; 46 assists; 78 points

Why He'd Fit Boston Bruins

Evgeny Svechnikov is an immensely talented winger who could really bring an element of elite offense to the Bruins. He has nice size at 6'3" and 205 pounds, and the Russian left winger made an impact with the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles this season.

He is a very gifted skater capable of swallowing up a loose puck and taking it all the way to the net. He has top-10 offensive talent, and he could fall to the Bruins because his defensive game is weaker than some other top prospects eligible for the draft.

Stats via Elite Prospects unless otherwise noted.