The Boston Bruins have finally acknowledged how underwhelming their season has been, becoming the first team to fire a head coach this season when they let go all-time single-season wins record holder Jim Montgomery. Associate coach and penalty-kill expert Joe Sacco has been promoted in his place. That move is likely to bring a wave of defense to a Bruins lineup that’s tied for the third-most goals-against this season. But general manager Don Sweeney isn’t waiting around for hypotheticals, with The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun reporting that the team is simultaneously exploring the trade market for a potential spark.
LeBrun said Sweeney isn’t beating around the bush, directly calling out the poor play of new additions like Elias Lindholm – who Boston signed a seven-year, $54.25MM contract with Boston this summer. He’s followed that deal with just two goals and nine points through Boston’s first 20 games. That’s miles away from the production of the true top-line center that Lindholm was signed to be, and his rank of third on the team in scoring underlines just how bad the offense has been. LeBrun, not Sweeney, also pointed to the struggles of goaltender Jeremy Swayman, who leads the league in goals-against (47) in just 14 games. That equates to an .884 save percentage and 3.47 goals-against-average – perhaps the very last thing Boston expected when they went through rounds of contract negotiations during training camp.
The woes continue with Sweeney’s other gut calls. Defender Nikita Zadorov only has five assists in 20 games – and leads the league in penalty minutes (46) – and forward Max Jones hasn’t scored once in four appearances. It’s not all bad for the lineup – in fact, the breakout of bottom-six fixtures like Justin Brazeau, Cole Koepke, and Mark Kastelic would cause celebration anywhere else – but it’s clear that the team is completely missing their engine. They’ve done little to restock the cupboards since Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci stepped down from their posts, instead casting a wide net for depth forwards and hoping for the best.
Should Boston pursue a trade, it’d almost certainly be for a high-impact, top-six forward. Where they’ll find a team willing to part with a major piece is less clear. Seattle Kraken centerman Yanni Gourde has popped up in early trade rumors, though his seven points in 20 games wouldn’t bring the spark Boston needs. Gourde did score 25 goals and 64 points on the 2017-18 Tampa Bay Lightning, and has hit 48 points three times since – though he’s failed to pass the half-century mark. The Bruins have been leaning into grit and physicality amid their struggles, evident by their recent call-ups – both pieces that Gourde brings in abundance.
But Gourde won’t carry Boston’s top-line, still leaving a glaring hole in what was supposed to be Lindholm’s role. That may necessitate a more brazen trade, like attempting to acquire hard-nosed Nashville Predators center Thomas Novak, who’s missed a handful of games to injury this season and only posted four points in the 14 games he has played. That’s far below the 18 goals and 45 points Novak posted last season, which was itself an improvement on 43 points the year before. Novak has been square in the middle of a Predators’ middle-six that simply isn’t working – but his gritty style and finishing ability would both be heralded by this Bruins club.
If Don Sweeney is truly looking to push all his chips in, he could also target former superstar prospect Shane Wright, who’s been healthy scratched in Seattle’s last two games after scoring just two points in 18 games this season. Wright has yet to find it out at the top level, now standing at nine points through 34 career games – contrary to his 60 points in 71 total AHL games last season. Wright’s talent has never been questioned, but his fit in Seattle is starting to look quickly uncomfortable. For the right price – likely a hefty package with plenty of draft capital – Boston could try to steal away the 20-year-old burgeoning star, and put him in a far better spot to succeed between David Pastrnak and Brad Marchand.
So early into the season, it’s hard to gauge which top forwards could actually be pried away from their lineup. The Bruins will wait to see how things go under Sacco before making any large moves. But a strong array of centermen should await Don Sweeney on the trade market, with the limiting factor being Boston’s wallet – and underbaked assets – more than the options ahead of them. They’ll have to push the boundaries of the budget to pull out of a difficult 8-9-3 start to the year.
Nichushkin for Swayman. I’ll see myself out
Sweeney has no trade chips to acquire top-line talent. Boston can be thankful they aren’t in a Pittsburgh situation yet, but they are heading in that direction if Sweeney fails at this “retool on the fly” idea he seems to have currently.
None of the players mentioned really move the needle. Taking a flyer on Wright might be the best option but even then, I doubt Seattle is selling for pennies on the dollar. I’m assuming that a first round pick, plus Poitras and a lower level prospect would be required and that would be just a pure panic move
Fire Neely and Sweeney… fixed
I would rather have another bucket of pucks than any of the trade targets mentioned. No prospects, fewer picks and little salary cap room, but Sweeney isn’t “beating around the bush”? Oh no, said the rest of the NHL – never
No bloody kidding. Flailing around overpaying for players (who are all having mediocre seasons at best, and aren’t better than middle-sixers even if they weren’t), to do what?
The SMART thing here is sit pat until the trade deadline. If the ship’s righted by then, then it was no more of a problem than to a certain team that made it to Game 7 of the Cup Finals this past season. And if it isn’t, then screw picking up has-beens or never-weres, it’s time to clean house and get some draft capital back.
As a Leaf fan I’m not into the Bruins improving. Having said that if they’re in win-now mode maybe look at:
Granlund in SJ
Pageau in NYI
Frost in Philly
Necas in Car
Probably would need to move Carlo in any deal of significance however.
I don’t understand the surprise of people. Boston has been declining for ages and bergy going was the final nail. Their roster was meh heading into the season. Now that the unsustainable vezina level G is over people are surprised to see Boston is exactly what their roster says they are. 15 years of quality comes at a cost. Time to rebuild.
The last two years had Boston in the same boat people put last year’s Flyers and the Kraken two years prior: achieving a lot more than expected induced seeing something that supposedly isn’t there. I like this part of the NHL. There’s always the ability to steal a game and the talent pool is so deep that when a momentum catches on a team can ride it a while. Boston has some pieces, but I guess I’d expect Nashville to get it together before the B’s do, and also expect more lucid decision making from Trotz as well. I’d like to see Sweeney take a big swing though.
Lindholm averages under 20 goals, And 50 points annually for his career, Why is Sweeney complaining when he is the one who overpaid for a 3rd line center? When will Neely and Sweeney take on at least some responsibility for the current state of the club?
Easy. Because in the offseason, the media, fanbase and bloggers were all clamoring for Sweeney to Do! Something! and go out and Sign! A! Big! Name! Lindholm was the juiciest plum they could get. If all they’d gotten in the offseason was Nikita F’n Zadorov, the fans would be pouring in waving tiki torches and axes, and every pundit — including every poster here — would be cheering the mob on.
And never mind this: this is hockey, not materials engineering. Sometimes the choices go well. Sometimes they go sour. And sometimes you can get all you wanted, and the team fails anyway. If Lindholm turned the clock back three years, if Zadorov turned into Orlov 2.0, if all the underachievers started achieving again, you’d all be shouting what geniuses Sweeney and Neely are.
I thought the coach was the problem.
Another rumor that makes no sense in either direction. Why would NASH be shopping Novak when their biggest need is a center. So that would make their biggest need two centers?