McGrattan can play too in my view. And has the crazy streak you like in a tough guy. Don’t know why Flames gave him up. Bruins will like this guy

About time someone in the B’s organization recognized the need for more toughness.Most of the West enforcers have moved over to the East via free agency,and the Bruins are left with Thorny,who I like a lot,but no one to watch his back.How would you like to play the Atlanta Flames today with the lineup the B’s have now?All the Flames have is Boris Valabik,Dustin Byfuglien,Ben Eager,and,oh yeah,Donald Brashear.The Bruins also have invited career minor league tough guy Joe Rullier to camp.McGrattan wont be pushing Thornton,as Thornton HAS a job and a 2 yr contract.The battle will be between McGrattan and Rullier,as they are both pure enforcers and I seriously doubt if The B’s will keep them both.

Isn’t Reich back in the mix?

Reich is in camp with the B’s,may stick,may end up in Providence,but he’s not a true Heavyweight Enforcer,more like an energy player.I like him a lot,but he doesnt intimidate the way McGrattan does.

Gotta protect #19, our new “Golden Child”. Bigger does not necessarily mean better, though. The best Bruin fighter OF ALL TIME was short on stature but not on blood-enducing punches………..and yes, you’re memory is correct, that would be Stan Jonathan.

Sorry to all my fellow grammar/spelling/punctuation freaks out there. I meant “blood-inducing” punches. Please forgive me.

Stan Jonathan the best Bruin fighter of all time?? Pound for pound I’d definitely agree,but overall I’d take Orland Kurtenbach and Jay Miller.As much as I respect Thornton,he just isnt the intimidating presence that McGrattan is.With McGrattan on the bench,opposing players will think twice before they run Seguin or Caron.The Bruins have a comparatively small team,and they need a Super Heavy enforcer around to take their backs.I cant think of anyone better than McGrattan to do that.By the way,I’m not sayin that McGrattan should replace Thornton,I’d definitely keep em both.If Toronto can keep Orr and Mike Brown,if the Rangers can keep Boogaard and Prust,if the Flyers can keep Carcillo and Shelley,if the Flames can keep Brashear and Eager……..You get my drift

I appreciate your opinion, David S, you obviously understand that fighting is and should be part of the game (at least that’s the vibe I’m picking up)……..but I’m sticking with Stan the Man. Pound for pound aside, he was easily the best pure fighter I’ve seen. Nobody (Miller, Byers, Shoebottom, Cashman, Thornton, O’Reilly, Wensink, Milbury, Nilan, Stock, etc.) fought like Jonathan. (Gotta give Lucic an honorable mention because he’s ambidextrous and can pound people with either hand). Stan was a genuinely angry man that should have faced assault charges for some of his go-rounds. Google the Jonathan/Bouchard fight from 1978 because it’s a great example of his “I’ll let you score a few early and then I’ll bash your face in (literally) approach. What a great topic for discussion. Screw contracts, call-ups, and salary caps…….THIS is old school hockey talk! Nice blogging with you.

DZ,I respect your opinion,as I was one of #17′s biggest fans.I remember well the Jonathan/Bouchard fight.It was awesome.I also remember when Jonathan took on 6’6″ Gilles Lupien znd pounded him to a pulp.The only Middleweight fighters who I would put close to Jonathan would be Gary Howatt,and today’s version of Stan,Rick Rypien of Vancouver.If you’ve never seen Rypien fight,check him out on “Hockeyfights.Com”. Have a great day !!

Thanks, my friend. I will definitely check Rypien out. Hope there’s room on the roster for Thornton AND McGrattan. That would be a nice duo to hopefully get back to the Big Bad Bruin days.

DZ………I’m just tired of watching the B’s get pushed around.Its about time they had some guys to push back.I was looking at the B’s current roster today.They have 11 Defensemen in camp who are under 200 lbs.What is this,Zdeno and the 7 Dwarfs?? While most of the other teams in the East beefed up,the B’s picked up a few more Greg Hawgood wannabes.We havent had a true enforcer here since Ken Belanger left.There is room for both McGrattan and Thornton here.If there’s room for Michael Ryder,there’s darn sure room for McGrats!!

The Bs have built their roster around the “new NHL”. It is a league that tried to abolish fighting, clutching/grabbing, and stagnant offense. It is now based on letting fast, skilled players flourish. Because of this, the Bs believe that smaller, quicker players (especially defensemen) are more conducive to success. I agree, but the problem I have is that the Bs are horrible at bringing the puck out of their own end so I ‘m not sure they have the right personnel. I was really hoping they could have pulled off a deal for Kaberle because Ference, Hunwick, etc. are not very effective. Now, with a supposed young superstar in the making, you have to get some size and protect your asset(s). I’m also tired of seeing the Bs get pushed around. It STILL makes me sick to my stomach to remember that NOONE DID ANYTHING when Savard got blind-sided with a cheap shot. I like speed and skill, but I’m not blind to the fact that you need size and grit.

Balance wins Stanley Cups.Of course you need skilled players,but when most of them are 5’10″ 180 lbs,there is a problem.When the B’s manage to get ahold of a big skilled player,its someone like Blake Wheeler who doesnt start his checks,never mind finish em.Dustin Byfuglien woulda looked good in Black&Gold….he’s now in Atlanta.
As far as the “new” NHL goes,its beginning to resemble the old NHL,and I like that.Derek Boogaard gets a nice contract from the Rangers,and he hasnt scored a goal since Seguin was in diapers,but Rangers front office feels as though he can help.Put him in front of the opposing net during a power play….who’s gonna move him?
Brian Burke has it right…He had the perfect balance with Anaheim and he won the Stanley Cup with Parros,Thornton,and a few other tough guys,with Parros being the main enforcer.Now he’s slowly building the same type of team with Toronto.It still bothers me that the B’s gave away Colton Orr,and Steve McIntyre,and got nothing in return,and now Chiarelli is scrambling to find a super heavy.Maybe this is a kinder ,gentler NHL,the days of Bob Probert and Stu Grimson are gone,but there are still places in the NHL for toughness,and if you dont have it,then get ready to watch your skill players take nasty cheap shots.Just ask Marc Savard.

The NHL realized quickly that abolishing fighting was a HORRIBLE idea. Good example with Anaheim and their balance, but their big guys (Getzlaf, Ryan, Perry) are actually pretty talented. Byfuglien is a big bad dude, but he was one of the Hawks’ 2 best offensive players during their Cup run. You’ll never see Boogaard on a power play, goons don’t get PP time. The Bs have plenty of star power so I’m all for them getting some muscle.

Getzlaf,Ryan and Perry dont shy away from the rough stuff either.Those guys have decent size,and can play tough if need be.Not enforcer type tough,but tough.Thats what the Bruins need,some players like Keith Tkachuk and Billy Guerin used to be.6’3″ 225 talented and can rough it up if need be.Something like Lucic was,and hopefully can be again.By the way,I was jokin about Boogaard on the power play.

Size and talent are the biggest weakness of this bruins team. Byfuglien would have been a major piece to add to this bruins team and it is disappointing to see him basically get moved as an add on to that deal to ATL. By the way, in ATL they also have young Evander Kane, he is their best player and possibly could (develop) to be their best fighter, bruins fans should watch last year’s Kane vs. Matt Cooke fight (happened after Savard hit). At least someone took out matt cooke for that hit.

Unfortunately, McGratton will only help the bruins in the regular season. I love fighting in ice hockey and PJ Stock is still right up on my list. But I can count on one hand how many fights there were in the entire NHL Playoffs last year. Enforcers can help protect your skilled players during the regular season, but once the playoffs start the Shawn Thornton and McGrattons of the world are basically useless. Nice add but other than perception and entertainment won’t acutally help much.

Maybe McGrattan and Thornton wont see ice time in the playoffs,but they can be helpful in getting them there.You dont pick up toughness for the playoffs,you pick up toughness for the 82 game season.You pick up McGrattan type toughness to send a clear message “You wanna run Seguin,do it and You’ll be facing McGrattan on your next shift”.There are very few players in the leagur who actually put the fear of God into the opposition.One of em is McGrattan,Laraque was on that list,along with Brashear,Boogaard,and to a lesser degree,John Scott.I guess you could put Chara on that list,but since he’s not a true enforcer,I didnt mention him.These guys wont get you a Stanley Cup,but they CAN get you to the dance.

You write an article about an enforcer or about fighting and the comments come flying in. You write an article about the Bruins top scorer, you are lucky to have one comment. Gotta love Bruins fans and their priorities.

Excellent point David “you pick up toughness for the 82 game season”. I wanted them to take a look at Boogard earlier in the offseason, but I’ll take McGrattan. Hope Thornton and McGrattan can get on the ice together, talk about fear of God.

Thanks Neely……McGrattan had 13 minutes of playing time last night against Montreal,no penalties,but you better believe that Montreal knew he was around.Only one cheap hit on the Bruins last night,that was Tim Conboy on Adam McQuaid,and McQuaid took care of that himself,although McGrattan skated up to Conboy and said something to him,and you can bet it wasnt “happy birthday”.By the way,McQuaid got the better of Conboy in the ensuing fight.
To G-Man..Take fighting out of Hockey,you got the Ice Capades.If thats what you wanna see,thats ok.By the way,have you ever seen a fan at the game go to hit the head,or go to get a beer during a fight? I havent.

David S,

I guess it does not matter to you if a Cup has not been won in this town since the early 70′s. As long as they have two enforcers on the team, you are happy. I do not want to hear you on WEEI complaining after another lost playoff series.

The Bruins will not win with McGrattan and Thornton on the team together. Sorry.

G-Man…….I dont know if you were around in the early 70′s,but the Bruins team that won the last Stanley Cup was a big,tough team.When you have size and grit,you dont need 2 enforcers,but the Bruins have neither.I was looking at the current roster,and there are 30 Bruins on there who are under 200 pounds.How the hell can they win a Stanley Cup with a bunch of lilliputians? Maybe the game has changed some since the early 70′s,but its still Hockey,and Body Checking is still allowed.I watched the Florida Panthers knock the Bruins all over the ice last night.Lucic got clobbered on a huge open ice hit by Ellerby,Hamill got knocked off the puck over and over again,and Andrew Peters knocked the stuffing out of Lane MacDermid.They lost 3-2.They;re ON NESN 7:30 tomorrow night.Playing the Panthers again.McGrattan is supposed to dress for that game.I dont think the Panthers will be taking liberties with the B’s smaller forwards with McGrattan around.Thats why they’re gonna keep him.

David S,

I see where you are coming from. However, in your last post, the only guy you mention that will make the team is Lucic and I am including your boy McGrattan. Let’s see how the roster shapes up and assess after if your argument has any merit.

So G-Man,
if the Bs can’t win with McGrattan and Thornton on the same team, what is their alternative? They have no $$ to spend so they would inevitably replace McGrattan (Thornton got his contract so he stays) with another cheap role player. This gives them a better chance to win? Not sure I understand where you’re coming from.

Will the Rangers win with Prust and Boogaard ? Will Toronto win with Orr,Brown and Rosehill? Will the Flyers win with Carcillo,Shelley,LaPerriere,and Cote? Will Atlanta win with Valabik,Boulton,and Eager?Will the Islanders win with Yablonski,Konopka and Gillies? My point is that the tough guys are back.Even Detroit,an obvious all skill no toughness team has got Aaron Downsy back.The Bruins have a slew of undersized forwards,who can use someone to have their backs.Someone needs to protect Seguin from being bodychecked over the dasher,and thats where McGrattan comes in.I hope he makes the team,and I hope that Julien gives him some ice time.We play Washington real soon,and if any of you saw the whippin that DJ King gave Thornton the other night,that may be a good place to turn McGrattan loose.With so many of the tough guys migrating to the East,I think that Thornton could use some help.

Agreed, Thornton does need help. He’s a feisty guy that anyone would want on their team but the Bs need a TRUE heavyweight to help protect their stable of skilled players. The only way the Bs could get away with having Thornton as their primary goon is if they lifted the reins off Chara and let him beat some people down on a somewhat regular basis. I guess I kind of understand why Julien does not want this, but it’s disappointing becuase he is arguably the most intimidating player in the NHL. I’m not sure the Bs are getting the most out of his intimidation factor.