2015 NHL Draft Guide for Boston Bruins

The Boston Bruins missed the playoffs for the first time since the 2006–07 season, and failing to do so cost general manager Peter Chiarelli his job. Don Sweeney quickly replaced him, and the Bruins head into the 2015 draft looking to start from scratch.

The roster in 2015-16 will be very different than the 2014-15 version, and that is because mismanagement of the salary cap has the Bruins in a major financial bind.

Boston will need to adapt and use this draft to add some talented players to its system since playoff success over the last seven years has prevented the club from adding a plethora of young talent.

The Bruins need to hit a home run in the upcoming draft, and here's a complete draft guide ahead of Friday's festivities. 

Projected Lineup and Depth Chart

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As of today, the Bruins have the following roster players signed to a contract, per General Fanager:

Forwards

• Centers: David Krejci, Patrice Bergeron, Chris Kelly, Max Talbot
• Left Wingers: Milan Lucic and Brad Marchand
• Right Wingers: Loui Eriksson, Reilly Smith, David Pastrnak

Defense

• Zdeno Chara, Dennis Seidenberg, Torey Krug and Kevan Miller

Goalie

• Tuukka Rask

Projected Lineup

Brad Marchand—Patrice Bergeron—Loui Eriksson
Milan Lucic—David Krejci—David Pastrnak
Reilly Smith—Ryan Spooner—Brett Connolly
Brian Ferlin—Max Talbot—Seth Griffith

Zdeno Chara—Dougie Hamilton
Torey Krug—Zach Trotman
Kevan Miller—Dennis Seidenberg

Tuukka Rask
Malcolm Subban

Recent Draft History

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Top Players Drafted in Last Five Years

2014: David Pastrnak, No. 25 overall from Sodertalje (Sweden)

2012: Malcolm Subban, No. 24 overall from Belleville (OHL)

2011: Dougie Hamilton, No. 9 overall from Niagara (OHL)

2010: Tyler Seguin, No. 2 overall from Plymouth (OHL)

2010: Ryan Spooner, No. 45 overall from Peterborough (OHL)

The Bruins did not have a significant pick in the 2013 draft, but they have selected top-flight players over the last five years such as David Pastrnak, Dougie Hamilton, Tyler Seguin and Ryan Spooner. Pastrnak has looked good early on, Hamilton is slated to be a solid top-pairing defender for years to come and Spooner projects to be a very good two-way center.

Seguin is a legitimate superstar—it's just too bad the Bruins dealt him to the Dallas Stars for a return (Loui Eriksson, Joe Morrow, Reilly Smith and Matt Fraser) that really hasn't panned out to date.

Boston owns the No. 14 pick in the first round, and from that spot, it will have chance to select another talented player who could potentially help the team very soon.

Prospect Pool

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Top Prospects

1) Alexander Khokhlachev: Khokhlachev led the Providence Bruins in scoring during the 2014-15 season with 43 points in 61 games. He is a center who could make the roster this season, but don't be surprised if he is given a shot on the wing given the Bruins' depth at center.

2) Malcolm Subban: The Bruins drafted the brother of defender P.K. Subban in 2012, and he played pretty well during the regular season. Subban went 16-13-4 with a 2.44 goals-against average and a .921 save percentage, and he could see some time in the NHL this season.

3) Matt Grzelcyk: The Bruins' 2012 third-round pick will be a senior with the Boston University Terriers in 2015-16, and he is coming off a solid season. The defender was fourth in the nation among blueliners with a 0.95-points-per-game average, and he led Hockey East in points by a defenseman. He is a year or two away but has the potential to be a good blueliner in Boston.

Team Needs

Going into the draft, the Bruins have a couple of items on their shopping list, and they can address them by trading their draft picks. With that in mind, here are their biggest needs and potential fits based on the picks they have in their possession.

1) Defense

The Bruins lack quality defenders, and they don't have any elite prospects in the minors to call up for the 2015-16 season—or the year after. The team could be in a real bind if some team makes a run for Dougie Hamilton via an offer sheet, especially when you consider the 38-year-old Zdeno Chara is likely on the verge of retirement.

Potential Fits: Jakub Zboril, Jeremy Roy, Oliver Kylington and Nicolas Meloche

2) Wingers

Both Loui Eriksson and Milan Lucic will become free agents following the 2015-16 season, and the Bruins have burned through a number of their prospects on the wing.

For that reason, it would be wise to use some of their early picks on forwards who can step in and rejuvenate the prospect pool. This would allow the Bruins to prepare for a situation in which they lose a player via free agency, or it would give them insurance if they had to make a trade because of cap space.

Potential Fits: Paul Bittner, Daniel Sprong, Jordan Greenway and Dennis Yan 

Overall Outlook

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The Bruins are in a situation in which they are going to trend down over the next few seasons because they have limited financial flexibility, an aging team and not many prospects available to make the jump to the NHL.

Right now, the Bruins have $7,281,190 in space, and that won't be enough to fill out a roster while keeping important players.

It is very possible Zdeno Chara is going to retire soon, and there's a chance Loui Eriksson and Milan Lucic will leave Boston via trade or free agency within the calendar year. That will leave the Bruins in a very tough spot since they are going to need a number of good picks to set themselves up for the future.

Given the depth of the 2015 draft, it would be smart to try and take as much talent as possible, because doing so would also put Boston in a solid draft position for 2016. There is very little reason to think the Bruins will be a playoff team in 2015-16, and it could be a while until the team returns to being a Stanley Cup contender.

Draft pick history via Hockey-Reference.com. Stats via NHL.com and Elite Prospects. Roster and salary info via General Fanager unless otherwise noted.