It appears things have finally reached a breaking point between the Bruins and Jake DeBrusk.
After coach Bruce Cassidy made DeBrusk a healthy scratch for Sunday night's win over the Canucks, reports emerged Monday afternoon that DeBrusk has requested a trade and that the Bruins are working to accommodate the request.
DeBrusk has three goals and three assists in 17 games this season. His play had dropped off a bit in recent weeks after a promising preseason and first few games.
The Bruins had hoped that an offseason reset would lead to a bounce-back season for DeBrusk after a disappointing 2020-21, when he had 14 points in 41 games and was healthy scratched three times, including in the second round of the playoffs.
Whatever optimism there had been has obviously vanished, at least in the eyes of Cassidy and his staff. Resorting to a healthy scratch to send a message again this early in the season was a clear sign that there is still significant disconnect between coach and player.
In explaining why he was scratching DeBrusk over the weekend, Cassidy cited a "drop-off" in other areas of DeBrusk's game in addition to his offensive production.
"I think what happens with Jake and what we’ve seen over the last few years is that when the production is there, you get more second effort. They kind of go hand-in-hand. When it’s not there, we lose a little bit of that," Cassidy said. "That’s been the ask of him for a number of years here, to have no drop-off on this side of this ledger just because the production isn’t there. … You still need the other things, second effort away from the puck, working to keep it out of your net, etc."
It's unclear as of Monday evening if DeBrusk will continue to play while the Bruins work towards a trade, but the Bruins could probably use him this week in particular with the news that fellow left wing Brad Marchand has been suspended three games.
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