Here we are again on a Monday. Last week, we were on Krugwatch and nothing has happened on that front at all. Then came the OEL rumors and again nothing happened. Finally, the weekend brought Tuukka Rask trade rumors, which we’ll dub the incredibly creative term Tuukkawatch, which there is some news but nothing substantial. All of this is leading up to the NHL Draft that occurs tomorrow and Wednesday, the end of the buyout period which ends Thursday, and finally free agency on Friday.
So is the Bruins’ interest in OEL real or was it just a bargaining chip? Seeing as neither the trade nor Krug signing has happened as of yet, it’s hard to say. Reportedly, Arizona GM Bill Armstrong has been trying to get OEL to lengthen his trade list from the two teams on it now: Boston and Vancouver. Sources say that Ekman-Larsson is more interested in going to Vancouver, a team that is highly interested in him but their cap situation is pretty dire. Arizona likes the prospect pool from Boston better. Neither team has a first round draft pick in this year’s draft, which is something the Coyotes want after trading away two-first round picks for Taylor Hall and losing picks due to their combine scouting scandal. Of course, these transactions take time to work out, so we have time to see how it shakes out.
Torey Krug is still technically a Bruins player until Friday at noon. Maybe if Vancouver makes a big push for OEL, the Bruins can get back to possibly working on a deal with him.
This weekend brought news that Don Sweeney allegedly asked Tuukka Rask for his trade list. According to DJ Bean, he believes that Sweeney asks all players with clauses to submit a trade list.
could be wrong, but if I remember correctly, Sweeney would always get lists before the draft https://t.co/854TtwkymJ
— DJ Bean (@DJ_Bean) October 3, 2020
Tuukka has no trade protection for this upcoming season which means that he could be traded as early as October 9th. This is not great news if you like our goalie situation. It makes me nervous because the Bruins don’t really have anyone ready right now in the system. Lots of promise but not a lot of fulfillment.
Sure, there are a ton of goalies on the market right now and some of them could be had for a price cheaper than Tuukka’s $7 million cap hit. But, most of those players’ abilities have declined, which informs why they’ve hit the market. While it’s interesting to entertain having Henrik Lundqvist on a one-year deal, his save percentage of .905 is a huge falloff of production from Rask’s .929. Even noted Bruins killer Braden Holtby will be looking for a raise form his previous salary of $6.1 million. He’s on the wrong side of 30 for that kind of money.
With Vegas signing Robin Lehner this weekend to a 5 year, $25 million deal, the days of Marc André Fleury in Vegas are numbered. Not that the Bruins would trade for him, well not Rask for MAF, but should he become available, he could be a possible replacement if Sweeney could get him. But that is a risky proposition.
Hi All!
Internet probems this morn. We’re good now….. I guess you have to pay the bill. Hmmm.
My tech troubles! Hahaha…. At least they’re entertaining.
Silly to trade Rask, IMO. Yes, there are goalies available. Not of them wow me.
The league year is starting soon. I keep meaning to put the dates into the depressingly empty B2B calendar to remind me.
Morning all. I’m very proud of myself. Not only did I do laundry, I also folded it (no, I did not fold cheese into my laundry!) AND put it away!
I always throw a lil limburger in my laundry… it’s like a little sachet.
Hi all,
If Sweeney always asks for players’ trade lists then it sounds like someone has tried to make a story out of nothing. Easy to understand why – there’s not much going on at the moment and that is sure to generate clicks given Tuukka’s exit from the bubble. Hopefully it’s nothing more than that.
I’ve got three days off! Unfortunately two of those days will involve trips to the dentist and Ikea. Not sure which I’m less looking forward to!
Yeah, sounds like asking for a trade list is standing operating procedure and basically a GM doing his job. I’d be more concerned if he wasn’t doing his due diligence.
We shall see if anything comes of any of this. There is always more noise than action going into the league year. Lots of GMs explore lots of trade proposals, most of which never come to fruition. The only things I’m confident of is that Krug tests free agency and Sweeney will do *something*, but it is far from clear what.
Tuukka is – by definition – technically available, but I’d think that the price would have to be spectacular. i.e. Taylor Hall level return.
Was thinking about Hall this morning – it’s not insane to think about acquiring him, but it would blow up the cap. And there’s no guarantee that he would sign. (If I’m Hall, I’d love to play on a winner though who am I pushing around in the lineup? Are the Bruins going really to split up Bergeron & Marchand or if I play with Krejci, do I get the kind of minutes I want?)
Has there ever been a case of a player becoming a free agent and then signing with the team he left (eg, after not receiving the type of offer he was after from another team)?
I dunno. I know I’ve seen it happen with the Patriots (Devin Mccourty for example), but don’t recall it with the NHL. I expect that to be a possible outcome for Krug, but one never knows.
I think Hall would slot in on the LW of Krejci and he’s willing to sign a shorter deal according to reports. Last night Satan81 after his first scotch said this to me, then tweeted it: