By: Tim Burke | Follow me on Twitter / X @timsports3
On July 1st, 2024, Boston Bruins General Manager Don Sweeney signed Elias Lindholm to a seven-year contract worth $54 million, the largest Free Agent contract of Don Sweeney’s tenure as Bruins GM. With a lucrative contract comes great expectations, especially in an Original Six market. Throughout his 12-year NHL career, Lindholm has been revered for his well-rounded play, hockey IQ, and high-motor style. That aspect of his game has been as advertised.
In his first ten games in Boston, Lindholm won 53.6% of his face-offs and possessed a 52% Corsi rating. On the defensive side, Lindholm has been a solid addition to the Bruins’s Penalty Kill and is averaging 2:06 of short-handed ice time a night, fourth among Bruins forwards.
Unfortunately, Lindholm has not produced much offensively like the rest of the Bruins. He has two goals and three assists in his first ten games wearing the spoked B.
However, his five points came in the season’s first three games. The Bruins’ new first-line center has been left off the scoresheet for the last seven games. Last season, Lindholm’s production declined significantly, with 15 goals and 29 assists for 44 points in 75 games with the Calgary Flames and Vancouver Canucks. The year prior, Lindholm scored 64 points, and the season before that, he scored 42 goals for the Flames, playing alongside Matthew Tkachuk and Johnny Gaudreau.
Despite the steady drop-off in production in the last couple of seasons, the Bruins believed they could help Lindholm find his offensive game playing alongside talented offensive players such as Pavel Zacha and David Pastrnak. Shockingly, that has not been the case. The Bruins’ top line of Zacha Lindholm and Pastrnak has been on the ice together for 68:30; only the Bruins’ fourth line has been on the ice more together.
Zacha-Lindholm-Pastrnak’s Expected Goal Percentage of 42.2% is the lowest of the six Bruins line combinations to play at least 15 minutes together. Simply put, Boston’s biggest free-agent acquisition has yet to find chemistry with David Pastrnak. It comes as no surprise that Bruins Head Coach Jim Montgomery separated Lindholm during practice on Wednesday morning.
As great of a player as Elias Lindholm is, one thing he is not is a playmaker. In 2024, Lindholm ranked in 38% of Shot Assists. Even in his most productive seasons playing with Tkachuk and Gaudreau, Lindholm generated his offense by getting open in the soft areas and firing the puck.
As Lindholm’s production has increased, so have his shot attempts. Currently, Lindholm has 17 shots on goal this season, ranking fifth on the Bruins; his 34 shot attempts rank sixth. On Tuesday night against the Flyers, Elias Lindholm generated five shots on goal, his highest total of the season.
If the chances keep coming, Lindholm will get there. With a career shooting percentage of 12.1%, Lindholm is too good to stay off the score sheet if he keeps getting chances like he did on Tuesday.
When it comes down to it, Elias Lindholm is a player meant for the big stage and the big moments. He was a dominant force during the 20203-2024 playoffs with Canucks with five goals, five assists, four takeaways, 0 giveaways, and 36 hits while 51.2% of his face-offs. Jake DeBrusk was the only member of the Boston Bruins with more playoff points than Lindholm, and no Bruins center had a better face-off percentage.
Although Elias Lindholm’s offensive production with the Bruins has not met the high expectations set by his contract, Lindholm’s high motor play, two-way play, and hockey IQ are valuable assets to the Boston Bruins. In time, his production will reach the expected level of a top-line center.
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