Nick Foligno said repeatedly before the season that he was healthier, felt more like himself, and was ready to put last season behind him. Naturally, his words were met with skepticism from media and fans. He knew they wouldn’t go as far as actions.
“I think that was the hard part. You guys kept asking me the same questions, and I couldn’t really do it until I could get on the ice,” Foligno said Saturday afternoon.
Well, he’s doing it now. Foligno scored his third goal of the season and drew a late penalty to help lead the Bruins to a 4-3 overtime win against the Minnesota Wild Saturday at TD Garden.
These Bruins might be really good
In just six games, the soon-to-be 35-year-old Foligno has already surpassed his goal total from 64 games last season. He is tied for second on the team in goals in the early going.
Foligno’s role is the same as it was much of last season: fourth-line left wing (although he did get bumped up to the third line for a couple shifts late). His ice time is virtually the exact same as well. But what he’s doing with that role and that ice time looks a lot better than it did at pretty much any point last year.
Not only is Foligno scoring, but he looks faster. He’s been arriving on time on both the forecheck and backcheck, allowing him to more effectively use his physicality. He’s been more dynamic with the puck on his stick and able to make plays on the rush rather than just resort to chip-and-chase hockey.
Foligno even attempted a through-the-legs dangle in the second period Saturday. That may have been a little too ambitious, but it gives you an idea of the confidence he’s playing with right now.
“I think I’m just excited about contributing any way you can,” Foligno said. “Last year obviously was different, but this year it’s trying to contribute on the scoresheet, but also just the way I play, how I’m trying to help drive the bottom six here and make sure we have an identity each and every night. That’s the reason why we’re having success as a team, is everyone’s contributing.”
Last year, the biggest reason Foligno (and linemate Tomas Nosek, for that matter) remained in the lineup was that the fourth line was at least not giving up many goals. The 1.85 goals against per 60 minutes when Foligno was on the ice was third-lowest among Boston forwards, behind only Trent Frederic and Patrice Bergeron.
They also weren’t scoring, though. The 1.23 goals for per 60 when Foligno was on the ice was the lowest mark on the team. Low-event hockey was better than constantly getting scored on, but the result was ultimately still a net negative, which certainly wasn’t good enough for someone with a $3.8 million cap hit.
So far this season, the Bruins are scoring 3.16 goals per 60 when Foligno is on the ice. The defensive numbers have ticked up slightly to 2.10 goals against per 60, but the Bruins will gladly take that if the offensive output continues to be more than double what it was last season.
Foligno’s goal on Saturday came just after a Bruins power play expired early in the first period. Taylor Hall collected the puck along the boards, Foligno popped out to give him an option, took the pass and ripped a shot over Marc-Andre Fleury’s shoulder.
All three of his goals have come from him getting to dangerous areas around the net-front, with his first coming on a deflection of a Connor Clifton point shot and the second coming off a rebound from a Jakub Lauko shot, which itself had been set up by Foligno.
That is also where Foligno drew a penalty with 37 seconds left in a tie game Saturday. After Craig Smith had done some great work down low, Foligno tried to fight his way to a loose puck and drew a holding the stick penalty on Matt Dumba. The Bruins didn’t score on that power play, but they did put the Wild on their heels and set the tone for overtime. They eventually drew another power play, which ended with Taylor Hall scoring the winning goal with 10 seconds to go.
“He’s just playing really good hockey,” coach Jim Montgomery said of Foligno. “Outside of the production, like I don’t know if you noticed after he scored the goal, but he was skating the puck down low below the tops and he was escaping from people. So, you can see that his health is a lot better, and that’s adding to the fact that he’s skating better. He’s just done a terrific job being a leader of those bottom six forwards night in, night out.”
Whether Foligno produces enough to justify his $3.8 million salary will likely remain up for debate. But what he is doing so far this season is proving that he can definitely be an asset to this Bruins team.
That could prove critical, because everyone is aware that the Bruins are going to have move out some money at some point a little over a month from now when they’re ready to activate Charlie McAvoy off long-term injured reserve.
Foligno has long been a candidate to be that move, especially after already getting waived before the season. But if he keeps playing like this, while also continuing to be a leader in the room, he may win a season-long spot on this team yet.
He is not the only candidate to be moved. Mike Reilly ($3 million cap hit) was also waived before the season and has seen his ice time fluctuate with some early-season inconsistency. A struggling Craig Smith ($3.1 million) was just healthy-scratched for two straight games before returning with a much better performance on Saturday.
The Bruins do not have to make any decisions on that front right now. It’s always possible someone else could get hurt between now and then anyways.
For now, the Bruins will gladly take Foligno’s revival and hope he can keep it up. And Foligno will keep trying to prove the skeptics wrong, knowing that a good season will require more than a good first six games.
“It’s six games in. I’m not going to get too excited about anything,” Foligno said. “Just continue to do what I do and come here and be in the moment and be excited about what we’re trying to build here as a group. Like I told you guys before, I love being a Bruin. I love playing with this group. It drives me every day to try to be my best.”
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