Bruins’ formidable task of improvements in the offseason begins with acquiring an elite center

Messrs Charlie Jacobs, Cam Neely, and Don Sweeney have a whole lot of work to do, particularly between now and the first week of July, to return the 100-year-old-plus franchise to a respected, viable playoff contender.

The failure of 2024-25, when all boiled down, parsed and picked apart like a beer league goalie, ultimately was a lack of talent, a roster laden with too many AHL-caliber players, and too many legit NHLers who performed at minor pro levels.

And here we are left to wonder how will it change by October, when fans will face prices boosted an average 13 percent above what they forked out just 24 months earlier?

A quick synopsis of what Jacobs, Neely, and Sweeney need to address leading up to free agency:

⋅ Add an elite No. 1 center.

As great and prolific as David Pastrnak is, he is not a pivot and centers make offenses whole. Without Pastrnak doing what he did this season, and the past three 100-point seasons … well, we’d be talking San Jose/Chicago bottom-of-the-Original-32-barrel bad.

The top two centers on the roster as of today are Elias Lindholm and Pavel Zacha. Neither fit the bill of filling that gaping hole in the attack.

⋅ Add a power-play QB.

Charlie McAvoy’s abundant gifts don’t include bringing the heat from up high. He is not the feared shooter and scoring threat the Bruins so desperately need on the man advantage. He can shoot, but he won’t … so, after eight seasons and 504 games, that’s going to change? Nuh-uh.

Until the power play has a guy back there who is ready, willing, and able to let it rip (and, remember, the shots don’t actually have to light the lamp), then there’s no lemonade to squeeze from this lemon.

The best PP QBs create fear and mayhem. Good trouble. Other than the 62 power-play goals Zdeno Chara delivered his first eight seasons here, the Bruins have lacked that guy at the point since Ray Bourque left … a quarter-century ago. McAvoy has scored 14 PPGs.

⋅ Decide on a coach.

If it’s not Joe Sacco, named interim when Jim Montgomery was shown the door in November, then we’re about to see the third bench boss dismissed in a span of 36 months.

Sacco was handed a poorly engineered roster that was turned into Providence North HC around the March 7 trade deadline. He deserved better, but with Jacobs, Neely, and Sweeney having cooked up this dog’s breakfast, the bet here is they’ll bring in a high-profile bench chef with substantial bonafides. The likes of Joel Quenneville, Peter Laviolette, Gerard Gallant, etc.

The loyal, honest, competent Sacco deserved better, but if those were key metrics, Bruce Cassidy wouldn’t have been given the summer of ‘22 skidoo.

⋅ Choose a captain.

The choice, made clear in this space a few days ago, should be Pastrnak. He is the best performer this roster has to offer. He also tops the chart for time served and games played in Black and Gold. The Bruins were in equal need of a captain’s voice and presence in July 2006, hired on Chara as an unrestricted free agent, and immediately slapped the “C” on Big Z. If they canfind another Chara (if only), then give him the “C.” Otherwise, put it on Pasta and move on.

⋅ Clear out the clutter up front.

Here’s the good news: Jeremy Swayman as the No. 1 in net, and a back line bolstered by the returns of the injured McAvoy and Hampus Lindholm, provide a foundation that should put the franchise back in the mix for a wild-card spot.

But much work is needed across the four lines, especially among the top 6-9 forwards, to wring out consistent scoring. As bad as it looks, it will be worse if they can’t find a runway to extend Morgan Geekie (31 goals through Thursday) or can’t live with the number he pulls down via salary arbitration.

The purge up front began with the dealing away of Brad Marchand, Charlie Coyle, Trent Frederic, Justin Brazeau, and Max Jones in March. Deadline acquisition Casey Mittelstadt has shown a little bit of pop (4 goals/16 games) and he is a certain returnee. Overall, it’s a group short on drive to the net, touch, and finish. Out with the clutter, in with faster skaters and better hands.

If you’re looking at this season’s dynamic in-season U-turn by the Blues and musing it’s because of the hiring of Jim Montgomery as coach and the dazzling work of goalie Jordan Binnington, you’re not wrong.

But wait, there’s more. Specifically, and perhaps most importantly, the midseason addition of Cam Fowler to the St. Louis back line.

Fowler, acquired from the Ducks on Dec. 14 for Jeremie Biakabutuka, a second-year minor pro defenseman, has given the Blues backside bump they’ve lacked since the departure of captain Alex Pietrangelo (in year No. 5 with the Golden Knights). Since seeing Pietrangelo walk as a UFA in Oct. ‘20, the Blues have gone 6-10 in the postseason (not getting beyond Round 2), and logged DNQ’s the last two seasons.

Read: Shoulda signed Pietrangelo, who landed in the Nevada desert for seven years at an $8.8 million cap hit and soon added a second Cup win to his CV.

Enter Fowler, his talents lost in the protracted makeover in Anaheim, where he last suited up for a postseason game in 2017. During the Blues’ recent 12-game winning streak, clipped Monday in a 3-1 loss to the Jets, Fowler rolled up 13 points (two goals, 11 assists), 10 at even strength. That’s better than a point-per-game average delivered by a guy whose best one-season total with the Ducks was 48 points.

Blues general manager Doug Armstrong not only added Fowler without surrendering a meaningful asset, he also got the Ducks to retain $2.5 million of Fowler’s $6.5 million cap hit this season and 2025-26. It may be too early to determine what team made out best in all the March 7 deadline deals, but the Fowler swap easily will place among the top three. At the moment, it tops the charts. Grand theft, Armstrong.

Montgomery, of course, deserves due credit for tapping into Fowler’s abundant offensive skills. It’s what good coaches do. The bump from the back line is reminiscent of Montgomery’s first year as Bruins bench boss, when overall production from the six-packers totaled 205 points, approximately a one-third boost over the 149 they squeezed out in Cassidy’s final season (2012-22). Last season, they tailed off to 151 under Montgomery.

The Fowler acquisition came some three weeks after the Blues snatched up Montgomery after his Nov. 19 dismissal here (the Bruins then 8-9-3). The streak-snapping loss vs. the Jets on Monday left Monty with a 34-17-6 (.649) mark and 74 points — 3 more than the free-falling Bruins had for the entire season, headed into their game vs. the Devils the next night in Newark.

There has been more to Monty’s magic than Fowler. To wit:

Binnington, his game and ego boosted by his strong showing for Team Canada in 4 Nations play, went 7-0-0 and allowed only 13 goals during the 12-game run. His partner, Joel Hofer, was nearly as near-perfect (5-0-0, nine goals against). Their combined work led the Blues to a lopsided 51-22 scoring advantage during the streak.

Also, veteran center Robert Thomas (21-57—78 through Thursday) will finish as the club’s top point producer for a second straight season.

But what’s made the biggest impact for the Blues, and has them pointed back to the playoffs, is the uptempo approach of Montgomery and the surge Fowler has provided in the back. The same day the Blues added Fowler, the Bruins reached into the waiver dumpster and plucked Oliver Wahlstrom (remember him?) in hopes of pumping up the scoring volume.

We’re left to wonder how might things have played out in the Hub of Hockey had Montgomery stayed on the job for three more weeks, and had Sweeney been the one to pluck Fowler for that same economical pocketful of posies?

Overkill doesn’t exist in today’s pro leagues, which is why I suppose no one said boo over play being halted for 24 minutes Sunday on Long Island when Alex Ovechkin wired in his shot for record-breaking goal No. 895.

OK, so I’ll be the one to say it, boo!

Look, there’s no disputing the weight of Ovechkin’s historical accomplishment or his career at large. It was a thrill to see him snap off that sweeping wrister, seal the deal, and celebrate spontaneously with that headfirst belly slide. Nothing beats seeing a gray-haired old man morph into a little kid, according to this gray-haired much, much older man.

But a 24-minute shutdown, in the thick of the game, with the host Islanders at that hour of the season still in contention for a playoff spot? For just a dollop of perspective: The NHL’s standard between period intermissions last 18 minutes. The Ovie glorification in Elmont — absent only the New York Philharmonic Orchestra — ran beyond that by, oh, the equivalent of a dozen Pizza Hut commercials. C’mon.

The whole thing should have been over in 6-8 minutes max. Let Ovie hug it out with his teammates, tap gloves with the Islanders, give Wayne Gretzky a fist bump at the Capitals bench, and OK, skate a celebratory lap while waving to fans, TV cameras, and the folks watching back home in Red Square.

One last thought: I did chuckle when Ovie asked Ilya Sorokin, Islanders goalie and countryman, for the stick he had in hand when goal No. 895 blew by him. Sorokin happily obliged after the game, noting it as a sign of respect as he handed over his paddle.

It made me wonder how “Battlin” Billy Smith, the Islanders irascible netminder during their four-Cup run (1980-83), would have responded if asked the same. I’d like to think sportsmanship would have prevailed, but I’m also the guy who’d like to think a little restraint and perspective might have gone a long way last Sunday.

Colorado’s Cale Makar, the first NHL back liner to collect 30 goals since Mike Green (Washington, 2008-09), should be a lock to win the Norris Trophy (top defenseman) for the second time in four seasons.

Makar, ex- of UMass and with one Cup and 116 goals post-Amherst, has developed into the prototype new-age defenseman — not big (6 feet/185 pounds), but potent on offense and an effective checker, employing legs and stick.

Beyond the vastly underrated Green, only seven other NHL defenseman cracked the 30-goal plateau — Bobby Orr (five times), Paul Coffey (four), Denis Potvin (three), Phil Housley, Ray Bourque, Kevin Hatcher, and Doug Wilson.

Surprising omissions from the list: ex-Rangers Brad Park, whose biggest haul was 25, and Brian Leetch, who popped in a career high 23 in 1988-89 and 1993-94, the season New York ended its 54-year Cup drought. (The current drought stands at 31 years.)

Leetch, then 26, had a phenomenal ‘94 postseason, winning the Conn Smythe with 11-23—34 in 23 games.

Hurt here Feb. 25 vs. the Maple Leafs, it took Trent Frederic until last Saturday to make his debut for the Oilers. “Freddy’s” twirl lasted all of 7:10 in ice time (0-0–0 and minus-2) before the former Bruins first-round pick was sidelined again with a lower-body injury — and no telling how soon he’ll return … Reminder: the Bruins picked up Petr Hauser, a 21-year-old Czech right winger in the swap (via the Devils) for the 27-year-old Frederic and then flipped Hauser to Edmonton. The 6-3 Hauser has played for three Czech squads this season (most recently, Vitkovice) and possibly will get a look at the Oilers’ development camp in July. Frederic remains on course to hit the July 1 UFA market … Michael Callahan’s first NHL goal Tuesday snapped a 12-game scoreless streak for Bruins defensemen, dating to Mason Lohrei’s strike vs. the Panthers March 11. Earlier this season, the Black and Gold defensemen went 16 games without a goal, a drought that ended with Lohrei’s goal vs. the Lightning Jan. 9. Protracted stays on the injured list by Hampus Lindholm and Charlie McAvoy hobbled the back line’s offensive output this season. If both are back at 100 percent next season, that alone should help reset the attack … Former Bruins prospect Anton Blidh (a.k.a. The Bleedah) just signed a two-year extension with the Rangers, a two-way deal that pays the Swedish winger $350k if he remains in the minors (AHL Hartford). Now 30, Blidh had a number of looks, though brief, during Bruce Cassidy’s tenure behind the Bruins bench, but could not find his way out of a bottom-six checking role … Brendan Lemieux, playing in Switzerland (Davos), recently was slapped with a four-game suspension for punching a lineseman, errantly, it appeared. But he’s Claude’s kid, so we reserve final judgment. A Sabres draft pick (31st/2014), the 29-year-old Lemieux saw limited duty last season on the Hurricanes roster … Impressive late kick by the Canadiens, headed back to the postseason in part because of their recent six-game winning streak (league best as of mid-week). The X factor, beyond question, has been the shifty, dazzling Lane Hutson. The rookie blue liner had everyone wondering, upon leaving Boston University last spring, if he lacked the size (5-9/160) to thrive at the next level. Headed into weekend play, his production stood at a robust 6-58—64, a point-per-game average just south of what Makar put up his rookie season with the Avalanche … Finally, RIP Ray Shero, the ex-player agent turned GM, who died, age 62, Wednesday after a brief illness. Shero was a co-finalist to become GM here in 2006, ownership instead opting for Peter Chiarelli. The ever-smiling Shero was a man of wit, caring, insight, and wisdom, qualities in short supply in today’s hockey world and everywhere else.

Kevin Paul Dupont can be reached at kevin.dupont@globe.com.