When the Bruins signed forward Matt Beleskey in the summer of 2015 many viewed him as a potential replacement for Milan Lucic on the left side of David Krejci. Worst case scenario was that he became a physical third-line winger with the ability to get some dirty goals, right? Wrong, not even the most bitter Bruins fan could have predicted this. The Matt Beleskey era in Boston has been quite forgettable. Not something you want to hear about someone who pulls in $3.8M a year.
Lack of Production
Playoff production landed Belesky at the top of the 2015 free agency list. For Anaheim, the left wing put up eight goals, and nine points playing alongside Ryan Getzlaf. In an overall down year in the forward department, Beleskey seemed like a great offensive addition for a forward-hungry Bruins team. But to put it lightly, things have not gone according to plan. In 143 games for the Boston Bruins, Beleskey has scored18 goals, 27 assist, for 45 points, and has a horrible -12 rating. In his last 63 games, the left winger has only eight points, and is a -18. That includes zero points in 14 games played this season. Zero.
On top of that, he seems to make an atrocious turnover whenever Cassidy unglues him from the bench. At this point, Beleskey brings more value from the press box because at least the Bruins won’t carry dead weight on the bench.
Lack of Physicality
Recently, a lot of people speculate that the Bruins need to add some toughness. This is very valid, especially with the way teams have been taking luxuries with late hits on Bruins forwards recently. Don Sweeney has to start shopping for a veteran forward to add some snarl to the lineup. Beleskey, supposed to be the tough guy on the team, has proved, useless. His defensive performance as noted has and continues to be, horrible with his -18 rating over the past two seasons. But even his physicality has taken a step back. Last season’s Beleskey compiled 98 hits, the lowest amount since 2010-2011. He will drop the gloves, leading the team with three fighting majors. But his fights are meaningless if he cannot continue the physical play during the game.
Now Sweeney has some major roster moves to make and Matt Beleskey could be the one to go.
