Another day, another set of Bruins grades. This time we will be taking a look at two of the Bruins centers in Dominic Moore and Ryan Spooner.
Moore
Inside the regular season numbers: 11 goals, 14 assists, 25 points, +2
Inside the postseason numbers: 0 goals, 1 assist, 1 point, +/- 0
Grade: B
Moore’s numbers improved from his 2015-2016 campaign with the Rangers, but he still only lit the lamp on eleven occasions. Moore may not have been an offensive power house, but he provided a veteran presence to Boston’s fourth line.
Moore was a beast in the face-off circle, winning over half of his face-offs on the season.
Moore’s numbers are nothing to marvel at, but given Boston’s struggles to generate offense outside of their top two lines, Moore was a welcome addition to the Bruins’ lineup.
Unfortunately, Moore’s veteran presence was not felt as strongly in the post season. Veteran leadership in the playoffs is often what makes the difference between a first round exit and a deep playoff run.
Moore was one of the few Bruins’ players to play the entire 82 game regular season as well as all six post season games.
Spooner
Inside the regular season numbers: 11 goals, 28 assists, 39 points, -8
Inside the postseason numbers: 0 goals, 2 assists, 2 points, -2
Grade: C
Spooner didn’t have the greatest season for the Bruins. Spooner took a step back this year in terms of offensive production and never managed to get his stuff going. Spooner was also -8 while on the ice.
Spooner struggled to find both offense and confidence. After the hiring of Bruce Cassidy, Spooner seemed to finally start getting something going, but his progress was halted by a concussion in March.
Claude Julian often criticized Spooner for his defensive struggles, but Bruce Cassidy became frustrated with his inability to finish offensively.
Spooner’s struggles continued into the post season where he failed to find the back of the net. He only played in four of the Bruins six playoff games, but it wasn’t due to injury. Bruce Cassidy tried changing up the lineup to spark more offensive production and as a result Spooner was a healthy scratch in games No. 5 and 6.
His future in Boston is currently uncertain. He is currently set to become a restricted a restricted free agent but the Bruins are currently listening to trade offers.
