Bruins General Manager draws wild comparison for former Canuck Elias Lindholm

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Cooper Godin
August 9, 2024 (7:22 PM)

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Boston Bruins General Manager Don Sweeney was recently full of praise for former Vancouver Canucks forward Elias Lindholm.

This summer, the Boston Bruins made a big splash on the free agent market, signing former Vancouver Canucks forward Elias Lindholm to a seven-year contract that'll see him earn $7.75 million per season.

Bringing in Elias Lindholm gives the Boston Bruins a true first line centerman, something they've been lacking since Patrice Bergeron retired and that's likely the role he's occupy to start the 2024-25 season.

Recently, Boston Bruins General Manager Don Sweeney was full of praise for Elias Lindholm, saying that he has Patrice Bergeron qualities and that he's a player they've been wanting to get for two years now.

"Way back in the draft, we identified Elias as a player that has a lot of Bergeron qualities," Sweeney said. "It's kind of been a two-year pursuit, to tell you the truth, wondering maybe if down the road if he would ever get to free agency."

Last season, the Vancouver Canucks swung a huge trade with Calgary to acquire Elias Lindholm, sending Andrei Kuzmenko, a first-round pick and prospect Hunter Brzustewicz, along with a couple other pieces, back to the Flames. Lindholm had a tough regular season stint with the Canucks, which included an injury to his wrist. He did manage to take his game to the next level in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, helping the Canucks reach the second round.

Lindholm says that he believes Boston is a perfect fit for him, adding that he's going to try his best to bring a little bit of what Bergeron did on a nightly basis and is looking forward to helping the Bruins achieve their goal of winning the Stanley Cup.

"I think it's a good fit," Lindholm said. "Playing in the League for a long time, I tried to look at Bergeron as much as possible. I don't want to compare myself or anything like that, but I think I can bring a little bit of what he did and obviously try to come there and bring my game and come back to the player I know I can be and hopefully help this team to achieve a Stanley Cup."

The Boden, Sweden native appeared in 26 games during the regular season with the Canucks where he put up 12 points (six goals, six assists), four penalty minutes and was a minus-six. Lindholm went on to add ten points in 13 games during the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Being in a first line role with an Original Six franchise comes with a lot of pressure and expectations are high in Boston as they search for their first Stanley Cup since 2011. There's no doubt that Elias Lindholm will be able to handle the pressure well in Boston and it'll be interesting to see how much he's able to produce alongside Bruins star David Pastrnak.

Source: NHL.com
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