3 centers the Boston Bruins should target to replace Bergeron, Krejci

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The Boston Bruins are in the middle of a pretty tough off-season right now. After having the best record in the history of the NHL, they lost in the first round to the Florida Panthers who went all the way to the Stanley Cup Final.

After that, we knew the Bruins would lose some key players. It was bad enough that they traded Taylor Hall and Nick Foligno but they also lost Tyler Bertuzzi to the Toronto Maple Leafs in free agency.

Following that, they had two really big retirements. Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci are both done in the NHL. Each of them had a really big impact on the team in different ways.

With that type of hit to the depth at center, the Bruins will be looking for an upgrade. With their situation (coming off the best record in NHL history and firmly in win-now mode), they need to go for it.

These three players are good considerations for this role with the Bruins:

55. player. 107. . C. Winnipeg Jets. Mark Scheifele

The Boston Bruins would love to have a number-one center like Mark Scheifele.

Mark Scheifele has been an elite player in his NHL career. His two-way game is good and he produces points at a high level.

In 2022-23, his assist total was down (26) but he scored 42 goals which is up from his career norms. 68 points in 81 games is a great number.

If he was put on the Boston Bruins right now, he’d be the new number once center automatically. He’d get a crack at guys like David Pastrnak and Brad Marchand. That is why they should consider him via a trade as there is a good chance he is available.

Sliding Charlie Coyle and Pavel Zacha down a line would create so much more depth because of how productive Scheifele can be.

With some of these wingers, he’d find himself in an even better position than he was with the Winnipeg Jets and he had some great help there too.

Jonathan Toews #19, Chicago Blackhawks (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) /

Jonathan Toews. 19. player. 94. . C. Chicago Blackhawks

Jonathan Toews playing for the Boston Bruins this season would be wild.

The Boston Bruins have had Patrice Bergeron for the last 19 seasons and he was one of the best players in franchise history.

Well, one player that was slightly lesser than Bergeron in the same type of role was Jonathan Toews. He wasn’t quite as good as Bergeron as a two-way forward but he was close in his prime.

Bergeron’s elite play lasted longer than Toews as he literally won the Selke Trophy this past season.

Now that he is gone though, Toews would be a great replacement for a season. Toews won’t play for much longer but he has one or two solid seasons left.

We learned last week that Toews was going to take some time away from hockey but not retire. He will be a mid-season signing and it is almost certain that it will be with a winning team.

The Bruins plan on being a winning team so they’d likely be in the mix if the price was right and Toews had an interest in them.

You can’t definitively say that he’d be their new number-one center for a year but there is a chance that he would be. There is no doubt that he would improve their forward group.

(Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images) /

Paul Stastny. 26. player. 109. . C. Carolina Hurricanes

The Boston Bruins would love a depth center like Paul Stastny at this point.

The Boston Bruins would thrive with a centerman like Paul Stastny. He probably doesn’t have a lot of hockey years left in him at 37 years old but he can still be a good NHL player for another season or two. As of right now, he still remains a free agent.

This is an example of someone who has just been a really good player for the last 17 years. He was never a true superstar but he was always someone that was a great player for his team.

Unlike the first two on this list, Stastny wouldn’t come to Boston and just earn the first-line role. He’d probably in all honesty be the third-line guy behind Coyle and Zacha.

However, those three could form good enough depth with how good the wingers and defensemen on this team are. Stastny is a great veteran that knows what needs to be done.

Center is the most important forward position and the Bruins are in a hole now that Bergeron and Krejci have retired.

Normally, losing two great players like that frees up some cap space but they were on really team-friendly deals. Now, they might need to get a bit more creative.

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