LOS ANGELES -- They may not always have shown a lot of zip on the ice, but there has been no shortage of intensity with the Bruins’ offseason game.
Friday represented the culmination of a hectic but highly decisive stretch. Since their heartbreaking end to the season, the Bruins have:
--Re-signed potential unrestricted defenseman Dennis Seidenberg and Johnny Boychuk;
--Retained enforcer Shawn Thornton, signing him to a two-year extension before he could reach free agency;
--Traded mercurial defender Dennis Wideman for young goal scorer Nathan Horton and grinder Gregory Campbell;
--Then convinced Mark Recchi to return for a 22nd NHL season.
With potential franchise player Tyler Seguin added to the mix via the No. 2 pick on Friday, it’s time to take stock as to where these moves leave a team that was last seen wobbling dazed and confused after squandering a 3-0 series advantage and a 3-0 Game 7 lead to the Philadelphia Flyers.
There is no doubt that adding Horton and Seguin could potentially help the Bruins offense. Then again, there is nothing but room for improvement for a team that scored the fewest goals in the NHL draft last season.
“We’ve done some things. As of today we have added two huge pieces to our forwards. I’m happy with that,” said Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli after the first round of the draft was completed Friday. “We just keep pushing forward and try to improve the team.”
While there was plenty of pre-draft speculation that the Bruins would like to have found a way to draft Taylor Hall, a powerhouse winger who is projected to be a 30-40 goal scorer in the NHL, the reality is the B’s leave draft week with both the playmaking Seguin and a player who might already be what Hall is projected to become.
Horton was the third overall pick in the 2003 draft and although he has never cracked the 40-goal barrier, he has hit the 30-goal mark and scored at least 20 goals in each of the last five seasons. Playing in a new city, with some new focus, could help to push him past the 35-goal mark.
Yes, Hall could turn out to be a major sniper in the NHL. But he could also turn out to be a more middle-of-the-road player, perhaps one who has had the type of decent -- but perhaps below-expectations -- production that Horton has shown thus far.
Similarly, there’s also no certainty that Seguin will be an immediate impact player in the NHL, or that he can be counted on to spark the Bruins offense next season. Such is the case with drafting any 18-year-old.
“There’s no guarantee that he’ll play right away, there’s no guarantee that he’ll have a big impact,” said one league GM.
The Bruins will begin the process of sorting out if Seguin’s game is ready for the NHL at their development camp in early July.
“We’ll take a look at where we see he can fit,” said Bruins coach Claude Julien Friday. “The one thing about Tyler, and he’s been open about it, is that he can play center and he can play wing. We’ll wait and see what the puzzle ends up being, where he fits in.”
Seguin will certainly have plenty of opportunity to help the Bruins offense and the addition of Horton mixing with Patrice Bergeron, David Krejci, Marc Savard and Milan Lucic could help the team’s ability to skate two lines with legitimate offensive talent.
The Bruins defense yielded the second fewest goals in the league and that effort begins with Captain Zdeno Chara. There is little reason to believe Chara will not bring his usual stingy defensive game next year. Whether he can improve his offensive numbers is a legitimate issue.
The bigger question marks could revolve around a couple defenders who skated with Chara last season.
After arriving in a trade deadline deal with Florida, Seidenberg was an effective two-way defenseman . . . when paired with Chara. When Seidenberg went out of the lineup with a lacerated forearm, Boychuk moved into his spot and played his best hockey of the season . . . when paired with Chara.
Seidenberg and Boychuk were both signed to extensions, in large measure based on what they showed playing along side a Norris Trophy winner. But both players cannot skate with Chara next season.
Can Seidenberg be an effective defenseman leading the team’s second defensive pairing? Is Boychuk ready to be a top-four defenseman if he is not playing with Chara?  
There is also a bit of a style question. While Wideman was often the target of scorn for defensive lapses, he was generally capable of moving the puck out of the Bruins zone and often led counter attacks.
There is probably a need for a defenseman with a similar puck-moving style. Seidenberg, Boychuk and Mark Stuart do not generally bring that element with their games. Matt Hunwick has offensive upside, but can struggle in the defensive zone.  Andrew Ference could end up seeing a jump in his playing time if the Bruins cannot find additional depth in the free-agent market.
There is less uncertainty with the Bruins goaltending. Tuukka Rask should be poised to build upon a stellar rookie season. Sorting out the status of Tim Thomas and his ability to challenge Rask for the top spot, if he is not traded, could loom as an issue on the horizon, but there is no shortage of goaltending talent.
All in all, it’s been a hectic few weeks for the Bruins, but the stretch will likely ensure that the team remains competitive next season.