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BOSTON BRUINS QUOTES CHARLIE COYLE ACQUISITION CONFERENCE CALL Thursday, February 21, 2019 BOSTON BRUINS GENERAL MANAGER DON SWEENEY Opening statement… We’re excited to be adding Charlie Coyle to the Boston Bruins in exchange for Ryan Donato and a conditional 5th round pick. We wish Ryan Donato very well – a special young man and he will have a long career in the National Hockey League, so we wish him well. Really the impetus behind the trade for us was to provide more depth to our lineup. Especially 5-on-5, I think the balance in scoring is something that as of late we’ve done a real good job of but, it’s an area we needed to address. It also gives us a two-position player with size and strength and speed that we can move around the lineup and feel comfortable in a bunch of different positions and a bunch of different roles. On if Coyle is similar to players the team has tried to acquire in the past… Contrary to you, I was happy that David Backes scored the shootout winner last night. I think the two players are not necessarily connected in that regard. Charlie is a lot younger player. We do feel that his natural position is center. He has been used a lot at wing in a top six role. A definitive, top-nine player that has been in the top four or five players in Minnesota for the past five years in 5-on-5 production. He can help drive a line, as well support and complement players if you want to play him in a production role, be it with it [David] Krejci or who knows. We’ve played [David] Pastrnak a little bit in breaking up the top line and go up and play against heavier groups. The teams that we’ve been playing currently on this recent swing all are elite hockey clubs that we’re trying to compete with. If you try to get into the playoffs and move forward, I think you have to have the depth. We found out early in the year with [Patrice] Bergeron going down that we slid some younger players in there and albeit they did very well. Not disappointed in how [Jakob] Forsbacka-Karlsson handled his – his production has been pretty good. Trent Frederic is going through his indoctrination in the National Hockey League and certainly the emergence of people identify as our fourth line. We’ve utilized them as a third line with the minutes they’ve played, and they’ve played very well. Overall, the balance has kind of been there. I think that Charlie represents depth and flexibility for our hockey club. On if the team will look make any more deals… I don’t know if we’re going to necessarily do anything else. We’re going to continue to make calls and receive calls. We will continue to look at the marketplace and see what may or may not fit with our club. We’re going to cross our fingers that we stay healthy, and I think our club has deserved, a little bit like last year, put themselves in a position to try and challenge for a playoff spot and improve positioning, if possible, as we get down to the last 21 games. We’re going to continue to look at areas, but we’re excited. Talking to the coach last night or early this morning, he’s enjoyed watching Karson Kuhlman come in and add something to our hockey club. Didn’t know the player at all, didn’t have him in China, so he’s learning on the fly with him. And other players, Peter Cehlarik will obviously come back into the lineup potentially getting over his injury, if he comes back up and we make a roster decision. We have to stay healthy. That’s one of the paramount things as you go down the stretch, and you know the compression of the schedule. Will we look at adding more depth? Possibly. But we feel good about where we’re at. But you’re never comfortable. On Bruce Cassidy being able to get the most out of players… I think Bruce, he holds players accountable. In game stuff, situations he definitely is a coach that has his finger on a player. How they’re doing, what they’re bringing to the table. Certainly, willing to have them work through it, but he’s going to ask or require them to play the way – and respect the game. I think Jake DeBrusk is a great example of that. Danton Heinen is a great example of that. Players that he’s given some rope, he’s shortened it at times. You’ve seen the response. In Charlie’s case, I think Charlie will be able to come in and Bruce and I spoke about this early this morning in the sense that – where is Charlie going to feel the most comfortable? Where did he feel he can make the most impact? There is an area there that Bruce wants – obviously with Pastrnak out of the lineup, there is the ability for him to move Charlie around. But let’s get him most comfortable as well. He’s played a lot of center. He’s played a lot of wing but he’s a natural center. That’s probably where he’s going to start but you guys know Bruce. He’ll tinker. He’ll tinker with the guys that are playing well. That’s one of the strengths of him as a coach certainly – identifying in game who is playing well, and maybe who’s not. I think he does a really good job of that. On what type of forward the organization thinks they just acquired… I see Charlie mostly playing the middle. I like his size and strength in the middle of the ice. You know, watching him play the wing, he’s not necessarily a shoot-first guy. He’s a possession player, and can he complement? Certainly. You know, he can score, but he’s a bit unselfish in that regard. You know, he’s put anywhere from 50 to 30 points. He’s a system player, as a I mentioned to 5- on-5 production is there. I do believe he is going to come in and complement our group. I think he’ll help drive a third line to give us more depth and more balance. You know, it’s an area that we internally haven’t, you know, we might not have as much publicly acknowledged it, but internally we certainly discussed like until recently we haven’t necessarily had the depth throughout our lineup in scoring. I think that’s a far assessment of our group, and recently we’ve gotten more it, which is great for our group. We’re still missing David Pastrnak, so where does Butch [Coach Cassidy] want to play him? Do you set up in pairs where March [Brad Marchand] and Bergy [Patrice Bergeron] and DeBrusk and Krejci? In all likelihood, we’ll go back to the top line because they’re really good. It creates a lot of matchup problems. I’m hopeful, we’re hopeful that Charlie will come in and help create matchup problems for the other team. That’s where we sit. Especially, the way the [Sean] Kuraly, [Noel] Acciari, [Chris] Wagner line has been playing. On his thoughts on Ryan Donato’s season and development path… I’m not going to expand on Ryan. Obviously, he’s a member of another team now, and we want to wish him well. He’s going to have a successful NHL career. He’s got a unique shot and talent, skillset. Still learning some of the nuances, but we’re going to wish him nothing but the best. I’ve known him since he’s been knee-high, as I told him yesterday, and the rest of it I think is best left unsaid. On if giving up the conditional 5th round pick is more indictive of the type of player Donato is or if it’s more holding the line of the market… I mean, the market…again, there were other players in previous trades that establish years past. It’s really between the two teams to identify the specific trade that occurs. You know, they’re looking for more value; you’re not trying to do so. There’s always balance there. In this case, I think the players were the primary pieces, and the fact that they identify a player with upside. We identify a player that helps our need right now, and you know you’re giving up a good, young player in this case. Where the 5th round pick balances things out might be more of a timing thing in where we are in the course of the year. On if the organization considers local roots in assessing players… Yeah, yeah, we have. We factor that in in trying to continue to learn from the personalities of the players and do your due diligence in speaking with Chris Wagner in regards to Charlie and people that know, people that played with him, grown up with him. How’s he going to handle some of the things, as you referenced, are going to be challenges? Same thing with Ryan Donato and Tim Schaller and some of the other players that have played here and had success, and there are other players that haven’t. So, you’re right.

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