The Toronto Maple Leafs may have begun laying the groundwork over a year ago, but it sure sounds like the Boston Bruins may have a leg up when it comes to top Nashville Predators prospect Jimmy Vesey. Vesey, of course, has apparently decided not to sign with the Predators, instead exercising his right to become an unrestricted NHL free agent on Aug. 15.
And while the Leafs hired the former Harvard forward's dad as an amateur scout and even drafted his brother last year, a new report suggests that the Bruins sit firmly atop the Boston-area native's list of potential NHL destinations.
Per the report, Vesey will head to free agency with the plan of signing with the Bruins. That doesn't mean a deal will get done of course - there are many factors at play, including the Predators' desire to see their investment in Vesey not go entirely to waste - but it sure sounds like, barring some type of catastrophic occurrence, Vesey will be part of the Bruins' roster next season.
That's certainly good news for Bruins head coach Claude Julien and first-year GM Don Sweeney, who have done well to keep their team in the thick of the NHL playoff race. With five games left to go in the regular season, Boston (40-29-3) looks likely for a postseason berth. Nothing is assured in the closely-packed Eastern Conference, but barring a major collapse or an unexpected run by the Philadelphia Flyers and Detroit Red Wings, the Bruins should be playing well into April at least.
And that fact is likely just as important to Julien and Sweeney as having a strong offseason thereafter. Re-instilling a winning culture after the Bruins unexpectedly missed the postseason last year has to be a goal for the B's as they transition to a younger core.
Vesey, should he indeed join Boston come August, would be only one of a number of young Bruins players who would do well to learn winning NHL ways early in their professional careers.
Vesey, despite having been just a third-round pick in the 2012 NHL Draft, has developed into a lanky scorer with a long reach and star potential. Vesey posted 56 goals and added 48 assists in 70 games for Harvard this past year and was, per Nashville GM David Poile, likely set for a top-six spot in the Predators roster for this postseason.
It seems the allure of playing in his hometown professionally was too strong for Vesey though, and while the Preds and Leafs aren't out of the race just yet, it seems likely they'll be back to the drawing board when it comes to filling out their top six forward slots for 2016.
