Defenseman Cody Franson A Free Agent, Time For Boston To Claim Him

The Boston Bruins look to be an improved defensive team.  One player would be a good add is Cody Franson, recently cut by the Chicago Blackhawks.  The Bruins may want to put a waiver claim on him.

Franson is an offensive defenseman.  He performs on the power play as well as full-strength situations.  On full strength, Franson checks opponents entering the defensive zone.  Those checks limit opponents’ scoring chances.  He uses his body to block shots.  In the offensive zone, Franson shoots from the blue line for goals.  When there is traffic, his teammates will tip the puck into the back of the net resulting in assists for him.

On the power play Franson is the quarterback to set up the play.  He has a hard slap-shot and one timer for goals and rebounds.  He has 4 power play assists this season. 

In 23 games for the Blackhawks, Franson’s play was poor with 1 goal and 6 assists for a total of 7 points, far from the level he played at with the Buffalo Sabers last season when he had 3 goals and 16 assists.  This was not the defenseman the Blackhawks expected and they had to cut ties.

The Bruins might want to consider signing him.  They could use Franson on the power play.  In that category, Charlie McAvoy leads the team for defenseman with 2 goals and 4 assists.  Torey Krug is second with 1 goal and 4 assists.  And the team’s top defenseman, Zdeno Chara, has yet to earn a point on the power play.  Franson would give the Bruins another defenseman adding to the mix on the power play and might be the best blue line in the league.

The Bruins could afford him because Franson’s contract is only $1 million this year, and the team has $6.3 million left to spend on the cap.  But, the Bruins may not want to strike a deal with him because of his poor season.  He hasn’t been able to regain his scoring touch.  The Bruins already have defensemen who can light the lamp.  It might be a waste for them to add Franson on the team.  It will be up to the Bruins to make the decision whether they think that Franson is the missing piece to their championship run.

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