Austin Czarnik has also been having something of a breakout season and Colton Hargrove has been a pleasant surprise in his first pro season.
But the defense corps is weaker than it has been in for a long time. Chris Casto has been doing better than he has in years, and Tommy Cross managed to log two games in the NHL, but both of them are long shots for anything more than a cup of coffee. Linus Arnesson shows some promise, but he only has one assist in 28 games. Ben Youds is tied with Casto for the lead among Providence Bruins in points from the blueline, but he hasn't signed an NHL contract (though he has frequently been invited to training camp).
Chris Breen played nine games with Calgary two seasons ago, but it's highly unlikely in my opinion that he plays any more NHL games than that. Last season, when a slew of injuries befell the Bruins defense, he was practically the only Providence rearguard with an NHL contract who wasn't called up.
Brett Bellemore has the most NHL experience of any defenseman on the Providence Bruins, with 121 games of experience with the Carolina Hurricanes. But he isn't signed to an NHL contract, having to settle with a one-way AHL deal to continue his career in North America. Besides, a 46.4 TACF% suggests he wasn't doing the best job in the big leagues.
The infamous Matt Irwin and Frankie Simonelli (another frequent training camp invitee) round out Providence's defense.
As for goaltending . . . well, it's complicated. Malcolm Subban has started to regain his form after a horrid nine-game stretch that saw him go 2-5-2 with an .872 save percentage. His play picked up in December, and since then he's boasted a stellar .930 save percentage and a 10-3-2 record. The backup, Zane McIntyre, he started the season on a high note, making 38 saves in an overtime loss, but he's struggled since - he has yet to make more than 30 saves in a game since his pro debut and ranks 39th out of 40 in AHL save percentage, with an abysmal .887 save percentage.
Last, but not least, is goalie Jeremy Smith, who is playing for the Iowa Wild but is signed to a Bruins contract. He started off very well, with a .924 save percentage in October despite going 1-4-1. During that month, he made an average of 39 saves per game.
Nevertheless, he performed much worse in November despite facing substantially less shots and came out of the month with a .908 save percentage. His play improved the next month and it looks like he's on an upward trajectory.
It remains to be seen whether the Providence Bruins (or Iowa Wild) will make the playoffs, but my bet is that the X-factor for the Baby Bruins is the goaltending. Malcolm Subban has improved, and the Providence Bruins have started winning games because of it. If Zane McIntyre can pick up the pace, perhaps the P-Bruins can solidify their playoff spot.
* The AHL bases its playoff qualification off of points percentage. The top four teams in each division in points percentage qualify for the playoffs.