Simon Gagne stepped onto the Boston Bruins' payroll Tuesday morning, less than 24 hours after the team dropped its third straight regulation decision.
He stepped into the Boston lineup Wednesday night. The Bruins emerged from his debut with a resurgence of morale punctuated by head coach Claude Julien telling reporters that this was the team's “best game of the year so far.”
Only the staunchest of cynics can declare that sequence a stream of unadulterated happenstance. Putting in his first NHL appearance since April 2013, the 34-year-old walk-on wasted no time demonstrating his spark-plug capabilities.
Given the rust on his skill set and the fact that he is past his peak, there is no denying the limitations on those capabilities. However, limitations are not tantamount to nonexistence.
Granted, no one should expect Gagne to function as a long-term replacement for Jarome Iginla’s first-line firepower following the power forward's departure for Colorado. Not even after his stimulating near-miss in the final minute of Wednesday’s regulation segment while working with David Krejci and Milan Lucic.
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NHL
Article written by Al Daniel
Can Simon Gagne Replace Jarome Iginla’s Veteran Presence on the Boston Bruins?
October 16th, 2014 by Al Daniel Leave a reply »
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