Oskar Steen earned another game in the NHL with his showing against the Detroit Red Wings. Boston Bruins head coach Bruce Cassidy admitted as much.
But with Karson Kuhlman and, now, Jake DeBrusk in the COVID-19 protocol, Steen is going to get a shot in an elevated role.
Steen is set to be on the third line Tuesday night, with Nick Foligno and Charlie Coyle, when the Bruins host the New Jersey Devils at TD Garden. Steen had some good opportunities in the attacking end against the Red Wings, and Cassidy said the plan had been for him to play against the Devils no matter the other personnel changes.
The Bruins' ask of Steen: keep doing what you're doing.
"(We're looking for) more of the same, he's been good," Cassidy said Tuesday over Zoom. "Bit of a numbers game in the past managing the roster. But now that there's a few openings with COVID, it allows him to stay in there. And we discussed it, anyway, after the game, we thought he did a real good job the other night.
"I've said it before, when you can push from underneath, it always creates competition and makes your team better -- and Oskar's been able to do that every time he's been here. He's come back and gotten a little more confident each time, every game seems to have a look in front of the net."
"It's been good for him, we'll see how he does on the third line. I don't think it matters for him a lot, he's at that age, he's just excited to play and contribute to who he plays with. It's a positive. We want to draft and develop, put some younger people in the lineup and pushing other guys. Hopefully that's the case and it's a consistent thing for Oskar."
In seven NHL games, Steen has yet to score a goal, but he does have three assists in four games with Boston this season. Whereas some young players flash and then disappear during games, one of the most impressive things about Steen is he finds some way to stand out nearly every shift.
For now, he gets to do that in a bottom-six role. He's hoping one day that will change.
"I think I can play top six," Steen said Tuesday. "I have nearly my whole life been an offensive player, so I just have to score more and then (maybe) I can move up in the lineup. For me, the first step here is just to make the lineup, so that's what I'm aiming for right now."
Steen has been on a heater in Providence this season, posting 10 goals and as many assists in 20 games. That comes after getting feedback from the team to work on playing a little bit quicker offensively, leading him to make a concerted effort to shoot quicker.
His game is well-rounded, so if nothing else, he has a future as an NHL depth player. But the offensive upside is tantalizing, and if he finds it in the NHL, the Bruins might have stumbled upon quite the lottery ticket in the sixth round of the 2016 draft.
