The Boston Bruins have signed free agent centre/winger Tomas Nosek to a two-year contract worth $3.5 million. Nosek’s contract carries an annual cap hit of $1.75 million and carries him through the 2022-23 season.
Tomas Nosek agrees to 2 years $3.5 deal with the Bruins. AAV $1.75 mil
— Darren Dreger (@DarrenDreger) July 28, 2021
Boston Bruins Sign Tomas Nosek
Over his six year NHL career, Nosek has played for Detroit and most recently Vegas. Nosek was Vegas’ expansion draft pick from Detroit and is the latest inaugural member of the Knights to move on. In 257 career games, Nosek has recorded 32 goals and 34 assists. His 66 points in 257 games is good for a .26 career point per game average.
Nosek was originally undrafted, but signed to an ELC in 2014 by the Red Wings as a free agent out of Czech Republic.
Last season for the Vegas Golden Knights, Nosek recorded 8 goals and 10 assists in 38 games. This was a career high for Nosek whose previous high was 17 points in 68 games. Though he is unlikely to become an offensive stalwart at 28 years old, Nosek’s production last season would put him at just under 40 points over a full 82 game schedule.
What This Means Going Forward
Though Vegas utilized Nosek as a penalty killer, Nosek’s defensive game is mostly lacking. In addition to game tape, this is largely evident through his poor Expected Goals per 60 and poor Corsi Against per 60. Luckily Boston already has one of the best penalty kill duos in Brad Marchand and Patrice Bergeron, so Nosek can be used to his strengths.
What Boston gets in Nosek is a useful depth player who has a positive effect on offensive play. Much like the recently departed Sean Kuraly, Nosek has the flexibility to play both wing and center. Though Nosek may lack the grittiness of Kuraly, Nosek is far better offensively and comes in cheaper for the Bruins. Nosek most likely slots in as depth scorer on Boston’s fourth line with the ability to rotate between center and wing. If Nosek can repeat his production from last season, this will be a win for a Boston team that desperately needs depth scoring for a deep playoff run.
Advanced Stats Referenced: Evolving Hockey
