The youngster contributed to that title run as well, exploding on the playoff scene with six points in his first two postseason games against Tampa Bay after being a healthy scratch for the first two rounds. Seguin was a scratch again for Game 3 of the Cup Final, but returned to play the final four games after Nathan Horton was sidelined with a concussion.
Still, while being part of a championship team was an invaluable experience he wouldn’t trade for anything, Seguin wasn’t completely satisfied with his first NHL campaign.
“I know last year I had pretty mediocre goals and assists and points, but I did learn a ton,” Seguin said Friday at the opening of training camp. “I’m happy I could bring that to my game because obviously it’s still not about points every second. It’s about [being] a complete player and that’s what I’m trying to do.”
Seguin, 19, finished the regular season with 11-11-22 totals and was a minus-4. He had no points in his final 11 games and just one in his final 19 games, but did make strides in improving his overall game. That development was reflected in his playoff performance (3-4-7, plus-5 in 13 games), and the Bruins expect even more from the 2010 second overall pick in his sophomore season.
“Just the experience from last year is going to be a big help to Tyler,” Bruins coach Claude Julien said. “I think in this case now last year was a lot of ‘what could we do for him.’ … I think right now more of it will be in his court as far as what he learned last year and whether he’s willing to really come out here this year with a lot of confidence and with that experience combined. We know his skill level. If he’s able to showcase that on a more consistent basis, he’s going to have a bigger impact on our hockey club. We expect him to.”
Seguin prepared for a heavier workload this summer by bulking up his 6-foot-1 frame with an arduous offseason training regime.
“I’m around 10 pounds heavier than I was to finish the season,” said Seguin, who was listed at 182 pounds last year. “I’ve gotten stronger. All my tests were better. I definitely feel better, more confident and a bit more mature.”
With Mark Recchi retired and Michael Ryder signing as a free agent in Dallas, Seguin should get a chance to play a bigger role this year after averaging 12:12 of ice time in the regular season and 10:35 in the playoffs. But Seguin showed some of his improved wisdom and maturity when asked if he expected to play in the top six this season.
“That’s the goal, that’s what you hope,” Seguin said. “But I’m not the coach. I’m going to take advantage of any opportunity I get whether it’s in practice or games and see what happens.”
