Bruins Trade Deadline Rumors
The Boston Bruins are still the hottest team in hockey and the trade deadline is just around the corner, what will they do to bolster their roster for the playoffs?
The Bruins have been looking around the league at options to improve their team. Lately they have been linked to Patrick Maroon, Rick Nash, Michael Grabner and Ryan McDonagh. Truthfully I’m not crazy about any of these names except McDonagh but he would also be the most expensive to acquire. Let’s break down the case for each player. Most of these guys are rental players so they’d only be on the Bruins for this season.
Rick Nash – Nash is a goalscorer and he’s a big body with tons of veteran experience. He’s already got 17 goals on the year and he would be a good fit on the second line with Krejci and Spooner. The Bruins certainly could acquire him but it depends on the cost. Giving up a player such as Bjork or Zboril or Senyshyn would be a fair trade. Ideally give a combination of a couple young guys would be great. Maybe something along the lines of Czarnik , Vatrano and a 2nd rounder.
Patrick Maroon – I want NOTHING to do with Maroon. I don’t think he is a skilled player and I don’t think he would improve this team. His ability largely comes from playing with McDavid and I don’t think he’s ever gonna put together a better season than the one he had last year. He’s the same kind of player as Beleskey and we all know how that worked out.
Michael Grabner – Grabner is another veteran player who still has skill and has proven that in his last two seasons, in which he’s put up 27 goals last year and has 23 this year. I’m a big fan of Grabner and he’s not a one dimensional player he often sees time on the PK and PP. He’d likely cost a bit more than Nash just because of his stats this season and he’s on a cheap contract.
Ryan McDonagh – This one is interesting, McDonagh is the only guy on this list with term left on his contract. He’s the best player on this list and would help the Bruins the most. Obviously that means he would be very costly to acquire. McDonagh is a top line defenseman and he has been every year in the league, usually receiving Norris votes for his strong efforts. McDonagh would be an ideal trade candidate but there is no guarantee the Rangers will trade him at the deadline.
This years deadline is different for the Bruins, in recent seasons they’ve been on the bubble for making playoffs but this year it seems clear they will be in the playoffs. The Bruins are still a great team even if they don’t make a move but an acquisition of Nash or Grabner might put them over the edge and give them a better chance of battling the Lightning down the stretch.
The Bruins return to action on Saturday night against the Vancouver Canucks in Vancouver. They look to grow their win streak to three.
Written By : Tyler Smith (@TylerSmith4386)