Ahead of the NHL trade deadline on March 8, the Boston Bruins are an intriguing team to keep an eye on.
Based on their track record, they are among the strongest clubs in the league, and general manager Don Sweeney has been among the league’s most active and successful managers when it comes to making smart decisions during this time of year for nearly ten years.
What are the Bruins trying to get, then?
“I believe Boston is searching for a center, one thing about them. Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet remarked, “I believe they’re searching for a defenseman,” on Friday’s installment of his 32 Thoughts podcast, co-hosted by Jeff Marek. “I take it they don’t have any picks? I had the impression that you could only make significant changes sometimes, but a few individuals informed me that the Bruins do, in fact, have players who are mobile.”
For Sweeney, this trade deadline is unlike any other since he has seldom, if ever, had this mix of low draft capital, low prospects, and little salary cap room. Currently holding just $57,500 in cap space, CapFriendly has the B’sTherefore, it could be necessary for the Bruins to transfer players off their own roster in order to make true roster improvements before this trade deadline—something Sweeney has rarely had to do. By transferring draft selections and prospects, he has primarily been able to add veterans around the trade deadline.
“Teams out there do believe that the Bruins are trying to upgrade their roster,” Friedman stated. “And it only takes a glance at their potential to conclude that, because they won’t be selecting in the first round, are they really willing to surrender their best prospects—some of whom have already participated in NHL play? Not in my opinion. It probably has to be taken off their roster if they want to make changes, which is why I believe people are considering (Linus) Ullmark.
“Now, I don’t think it’s impossible—he has some control—but the main issue is that you shouldn’t take away from one of your best advantages if the Bruins are aiming to win the Stanley Cup. The only other scenario that comes to me is when they receive something that they believe is so good that they feel compelled to act on it. Still, I’d be interested to see what that might entail. Remember that Ullmark has some influence in this. He is able to apologize in some circumstances. However, once more, I’m attempting to ascertain their thoughts at this moment because I believe they are attempting to improve. To do so, though, they most likely need to remove someone off their roster. Thus, what gets something that they genuinely believe benefits them, or what do they believe is a good idea?”
The no-trade provision in Ullmark’s contract is the “control” Friedman refers to. According to CapFriendly, he can submit a list of 16 teams to whom he would not accept a trade.
Defenseman Noah Hanifin of the Calgary Flames is a possible trade target for the Boston Bruins. Hanifin would fit in well in Boston for a number of reasons. But a goalie is not necessary for the Flames. They have Jacob Markstrom, a tremendously talented goalkeeper who Bruins fans witnessed firsthand during Thursday night’s overtime loss to the Flames. There’s no reason for the Flames to sign Ullmark and allocate almost $11 million in salary space to two experienced goalies unless they trade Markstrom.
Ullmark’s cap hit for this season and the following season is $5 million. According to CapFriendly, there are just 15 teams with $5 million or more in cap space as of this writing, and many of those teams are far down in the standings. How many teams would A) have a pressing need for a goalkeeper, B) have the cap flexibility to make the move, and C) not be on Ullmark’s no-trade list if the Bruins were willing to sell Ullmark? Although the solutions to these issues are unknown, they ought to be taken into consideration during this discussion.