Former BC captain Marc McLaughlin signs with B’s

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While many Bruins fans are waiting to see what kind of splash their team makes before the upcoming trade deadline on March 21, the B’s continued to bolster their prospect pool with local flavor on Tuesday.

A day after signing Providence College defenseman Mike Callahan, the B’s inked free agent Marc McLaughlin out of Boston College and North Billerica.

Character has also colored the B’s thinking in these signings. Callahan was a three-year captain at PC and McLaughlin has been a two-year captain at the Heights.

McLaughlin was something of a late-bloomer at BC. After scoring 19 goals in his first three years with the Eagles, the 6-foot, 210-pound centerman posted 21 in 33 games this season. McLaughlin also played for Team USA in the Beijing Olympics.

His deal, which is effective immediately, is a two-year pact worth an annual NHL cap hit of $883,750.

BC coach Jerry York said McLaughlin made great strides during his time in Chestnut Hill.

“When he came here, he was a good player but you didn’t think of him as pro. Now he’s a pro player. And that’s not so much a credit to the coaching staff or Hockey East, but the player,” said York, adding that he improved both his shooting and skating over the years. “How he comported himself was exemplary, both on and off the ice. He wasn’t a rah-rah guy, but he got along with everybody and he was a great leader.”

McLaughlin had been on the B’s radar for a while, as he was for many other teams. The centerman participated in the B’s Development Camp last summer.

“He had a lot of interest from other teams, but when you grow up around here, the Bruins are always at the top of the list,” said York. “Marc’s a great example for other kids. Some of them get so caught up in the draft, but here’s a guy who was never drafted and now he’s a Bruin. There are different paths to the NHL.”

With the deal kicking in immediately, McLaughlin could get some games down the stretch for the B’s but would most likely head to Providence for the AHL playoff push.

Foligno hits 1,000

The Minnesota Wild’s Marcus Foligno tried over the summer to get his big brother Nick to come and play with him in St. Paul, but it didn’t work out.

As it turns out, neither did Marcus’ grand plans for Nick’s 1,000th game.

“He was trying to get me to be a healthy scratch one game so I could do it against him,” cracked Nick, hitting the milestone in Chicago on Tuesday instead of against his brother when the Bruins visit the Xcel Energy Center on Wednesday.

Nick and his father Mike are only the second father-son duo to each play 1,000 games after Bobby and Brett Hull. The 30-year-old Marcus is at 658. Mike had just returned from Beijing, where he coached the Canadian Paralympic team, so he wasn’t able to make it in person to Chicago for the game, but he would be watching. Nick credited his father, as well as many others, who have helped him along the way.

“The way we’ve modeled ourselves in our careers is, if you’re good to the game, the game will be good to you. My dad instilled that in us as kids and we’ve tried to live our lives like that in the game,” said Foligno.

While a bigger on-ice role was anticipated for Foligno when he signed a two-year deal worth $3.8 million annually, he’s settling into a fourth-line left wing spot well. And coach Bruce Cassidy said that there is more to what Foligno brings than meets the eye.

“He leads by example on the ice, but we have those guys. (Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand) are two of the hardest working guys,” said Cassidy. “For us, it’s more of the vocal part, taking the younger guys aside. That’s where we need a little extra. Because we’re getting young compared to where we were, when you lose a (David Krejci), a Tuukka (Rask), a (Zdeno Chara), some guys that had been around who can take a guy under their wing. That’s what he’s done very well.”

That was a component of the signing.

“In talking to Bergy over the summer and what we wanted to accomplish here, I think he was looking for that, too, and taking some of the load off of him with the minutes he plays and the responsibility,” said Foligno. “I know firsthand what it’s like when you’re the captain. There are so many directions you’re getting pulled in from the energy aspect of it. And I wanted to help. If I was coming here, it was to help in that regard, so I try to bring that. You’ve got to make an impact however you can in the game. Sometimes it’s vocally, sometimes it’s on the ice.”.

This and that

The Colorado Avalanche are not only leading the NHL standings, they are first out of the gate with deadline deals. After obtaining tough right-shot defenseman Josh Manson from Anaheim on Monday, they dealt Tyson Jost to Minnesota for Nico Sturm, which gave them some extra cap space for a potential play for Claude Giroux. Giroux would also fit the bill for the B’s as well. …

After taking a maintenance day on Monday, Bergeron was set to go back in the lineup against the Blackhawks.



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