Boston head coach Bruce Cassidy believes the Bruins have filled another well-established need.
The Bruins traded for Anaheim Ducks winger Nick Ritchie on Monday afternoon ahead of the NHL trade deadline.
The 6-foot-2, 232-pound forward was acquired by the Bruins in exchange for winger Danton Heinen. Cassidy spoke with reporters Monday and expressed how he thought the size and physicality of Ritchie would bring a tougher brand of hockey to the group.
“Then your other deals today, if it happens to be a big body like Nick Ritchie, that’s something, a guy who can get inside,” Cassidy said, per the team. “I know we’ve talked about that — is that a deficiency in our lineup against some of those bigger d (defensive) cores? So, we’ve had those internal discussions.
“So, if there’s an addition there, I think that’s where the upgrade where we’ve looked at is to try and get a little bigger for those heavier (defenses) and those tougher games in the playoffs,” Cassidy continued. “So, we’ve had those discussions and if it gets finalized in that scenario, then I think that’d improve or help us.”
The trade for Ritchie marked the second deal the Bruins had accomplished with Anaheim before the deadline. The Bruins landed Ondrej Kase on Friday as well.
