Which Bruins players have the most trade value heading into the NHL Draft?

As we’re all aware at this point, the Bruins are without a first-round pick entering the first round of the NHL Draft on Friday night in Dallas.

The Bruins, of course, shipped that pick — the No. 26 selection — to the New York Rangers as part of the deal that landed Rick Nash in Boston.

Come Friday, the Bruins will be sitting much like a kid in a toy store without any money. They’ll miss out on the excitement of the first round unless. of course, they trade back into it. It’s a possibility, but something that won’t be easy to do unless they part ways with a key part of last year's team.

Let’s play GM for a bit with a look at potential trade targets the Bruins could ship out on draft day. Before we get there, here’s a stick-tap to Capfriendly.com for providing salary numbers and details.

Torey Krug
2017-18 season: Krug’s season came to a rough, abrupt ending when he slid into the boards hard in Game 4 of the second round of the playoffs and broke his ankle. It was a nasty fall, but Krug is expected to be back in time for training camp. Before that occurred, though, Krug had a stellar regular season. He scored 14 goals and had 45 assists for 59 points, the fourth-most on the team.
Contract details: Two years, $5.25 million annual average remaining, plus modified no-trade clause.
The skinny: Krug’s name has been popular in the rumor mill this offseason. One former GM said Krug is a player he is asked about often and the appeal is obvious. Krug has an exceptionally talented offensive game and runs the Bruins' power-play unit. He’d be a plus for any team looking for immediate scoring from the blue line. The Bruins, of course, would sacrifice his offensive output in favor of getting bigger and more physical on defense. If they keep Krug, they’ll have two 5-foot-9 defensemen on the left side. Matt Grzelcyk just signed to a two-year deal and emerged after a strong rookie season last year. Krug has a modified no-trade clause and would be able to submit a list of eight teams he cannot be traded to. The former GM thinks Krug could bring back a pick somewhere around No. 10 overall. An interesting trade partner would be the Edmonton Oilers, run by former Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli, and not just because of his familiarity with Krug. The Oilers are in possession of the No. 10 pick, which aligns nicely. The Oilers’ top scoring defensemen, Darnell Nurse and Matt Benning, combined for 47 points – 12 less than Krug.

David Backes
2017-18 season: In his second year with the Bruins, the veteran forward was more efficient than he was in his first after he signed a five-year, $30 million contract. Backes scored 33 points, five less than he did in his first season with Boston, but only played 17 fewer games this season. He battled myriad injuries, and it culminated with a concussion in the playoffs after he was hit hard by J.T. Miller in Game 5.
Contract: Three years, $6 million AAV, plus no-movement clause in 18-19 and modified no-trade clause next two years.
The skinny: By the end of the playoffs, Backes had been demoted to the fourth line, then moved back to the third line, but overall it wasn’t ideal. Paying $6 million a year for a fourth-liner is expensive, a cost the Bruins likely would not want to carry. Of course, there’s always the possibility Backes can improve. At the end of the year, he said he believes he can still be a consistent producer on offense but he’ll have to prove it. It was alarming to hear him admit the concussions he’s had – he said it was more than “a handful-plus.” He could be a steady presence on the third line, especially if the Bruins keep two younger players at left wing and center. If Riley Nash does not return as an unrestricted free agent the Bruins have the depth to fill that role with young talents such as Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson or Trent Frederic. Sean Kuraly could jump to the left wing from the fourth line, plus Ryan Donato will be in his first full season. If Backes doesn’t pan out, though, the Bruins will pay for it. The no-movement clause gets tricky. He’d have to waive it in order to get traded or be bought out. In the subsequent years, he has an eight-team and 15-team list, respectively, on the modified clause. According to CapFriendly, it’d cost the Bruins $4.6 million to buyout Backes, which offers an estimated $2.3 million savings.

David Krejci
2017-18: The 32-year-old missed roughly a month at the beginning of the season and finished with 44 points in 64 games. It was the least amount of games, and least amount of production, in three years for Krejci. By the end of the season, though, the Bruins had a steady second line. The emergence of rookie Jake DeBrusk seemed to boost the line and Krejci finished the season with six points in the final 10 games, though three of them came in a single game. He carried that into the playoffs and had 10 points in 12 games, fifth-most behind the Bruins top line trio of Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron, and David Pastrnak, and Krug.
Contract: Three years remaining, $7.25 million AAV, no-movement clause in 18-19, modified no-trade clause in final two years.
The skinny: Like Backes, the Bruins would only to be able to move Krejci with his permission or via a buyout. It’s not really easy to move either of these players, though Krejci would likely fetch more in return than Backes. While the Backes move would help shed salary, the Bruins could might be able to get a late first-round pick back for Krejci. The Senators and Blackhawks each have a top-10 pick, plus another later in the round. The Blackhawks will pick at No. 8 and No. 27. The Senators have No. 4 and No. 22. Teams with multiple picks are more likely to part with one, but whether they’d assume Krejci’s salary is the big issue. Buying out Krejci would cost $14.3 million and offer savings of $7.1million.