https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rTx9q8CrLt4
Ohhhh BOY! Those Bruins are in trouble. Dennis Seidenberg just had lower-back surgery and is out for two months, Zdeno Chara played 4 minutes the other night before leaving the game and Joe Morrow took a slapshot in the leg during the same game. The Boston Bruins are having a fever of sorts and the only cure is a trade with the Edmonton Oilers.
Look, the Boston Bruins defence would look like this if the regular season started tomorrow:
Joe Morrow (maybe) – Torey Krug
Zach Trotman – Adam McQuaid
Kevan Miller – Matt Irwin
Linus Arnesson/Colin Miller/Chris Kasto
And these were the pairings for the last game on the 22nd courtesy of Dobber’s Hockey:
Chris Casto – Joe Morrow
Torey Krug – Adam McQuaid
Linus Arnesson – Kevan Miller
This would be a chance for Don Sweeney to mend some fences with Oilers GM Peter Chiarelli after F-ing him over at the draft in the Hamilton deal… I’m still miffed about that. The Oilers have a glut of men on the back end that could be of service to the Bruins.
Ship ‘Em Out!
Andrew Ference is a former Boston Bruin and one has to wonder if he’d be okay waiving his no-trade clause to go back to the place where he found success. I think the Oilers probably wouldn’t mind him heading that way as well so they could get this captaincy business off the table and so they could let Griffin Reinhart know he can find a place in Edmonton to live in. His value can’t be more than a 5th or 6th round pick right now.
Nikita Nikitin would be the ultimate apology from Sweeney. Even if the Oilers took on some salary to force this deal through, it would be a blessing for them. Nikitin has done jack shite this preseason so far despite what Jack Michaels and Bob Stauffer have been saying during their radio broadcasts. You can even hear it in their voices as they since Nikitin’s praises, it sounds like they’re going to puke. Nikitin’s value surely sits at “Steaming Pile of Rhino Dung”, so if Chiarelli could get a late draft pick I’d see that as a major victory.
Brandon Davidson, if I’m not mistaken, will have to clear waivers to go down to the AHL this year and there’s no way he’s making the team with Reinhart and Nurse sitting there. Personally I think he’s 50/50 to get claimed and he’d probably have the most appeal to the Bruins apart from maybe Ference. Davidson’s a young guy still and I reckon he’d probably go for a 4th rounder.
Mark Fayne doesn’t seem to be in the foreground of Chiarelli’s mind and I wonder aloud if he’s going to be one of the Oilers GM’s trade chips this year. Fayne doesn’t really standout when he plays but he’s a very steady Eddie type and at this point he’s still a serviceable NHL defenceman and the Oilers should hold on to them in fear of becoming what the Bruins are right now. But with all of that said, is he really a no.4 dman or is he more of a no.5/6? I could see Fayne’s value at around a Chris Kelly or a 3rd rounder.
A Bear Market
So what is it that the Bruins have that maybe the Oilers would covet? We know that Peter Chiarelli and Todd McLellan like heavy teams and Chiarelli said in his interview with Bob McKenzie that he’d like to acquire some “heavier” players. The way I read that is he wants some higher-end foot soldiers. Yes men that make it easier for the skillers to work their magic.
Unfortunately the only players that fit the description of “heavier” players are players that the Bruins just signed, have ugly contracts or will never leave the team.
Matt Beleskey is a gritty winger coming off a career season but he’s a recent signing and Benoit Pouliot is doing a fine job. Not gonna happen here.
Jimmy Hayes is an interesting character. He’s 6’6″ 220lbs, can skate and is a shooter. He put up 19 goals and 16 assists last year for the Panthers and would be a nice replacement for say Nail Yakupov if he were sacrificed. Not gonna happen here either.
Patrice Bergeron? Not unless Nugent-Hopkins is going the other way…
Loui Eriksson isn’t quite the player that comes to mind when I think heavy and his contract is ugly. But even then, as unfair as it would be, Nikitin for Eriksson straight across might rid each team of a headache as their contracts are identical ($4.5m for 2015/16). Do the Oilers really need him though? Somebody would have to be sacrificed to fit him in the top 9.
Chris Kelly… He’s probably the guy with the greatest potential of becoming an Oiler but how much better is he than say Rob Klinkhammer or Tyler Pitlick?
So as it looks, any deal that could potentially take place between the Boston Bruins and the Edmonton Oilers would most likely see the Oilers taking back draft picks or prospects that might never see the light of the NHL.
What are your thoughts? Let us know in the comments below!
Thanks for reading! Take Care!
BLH
