NHL Notebook: Are Bruins staring at crossroads ahead of a pivotal trade deadline?

Don Sweeney would be the first to tell you that a lot can change in the span of a few days.

Hell, a lot can change in just a few hours. 

Look no further than Tuesday’s contest against the Penguins as a fascinating case study.

• The Bruins were up, 2-0, against a formidable opponent in the Pittsburgh Penguins.
• The Bruins were the healthiest they’ve been up front in months.
• Tuukka Rask was sidelined with a nagging lower-body injury, but with that setback came the opportunity for Jeremy Swayman to earn a few more spot starts against NHL competition.
• And despite a lackluster lull going into the All-Star break, the Bruins were once again executing like the team that went 12-4-1 coming out of the holidays.

All seemed right with the world for a team that, in just a few more weeks, was poised to add to its roster in hopes of putting itself over the top for another fruitful playoff run. 

By the end of the night? 

Rask’s comeback attempt was reportedly set to end, Brad Marchand was well on his way to a six-game suspension and Patrice Bergeron exited the contest with an upper-body injury. 

A 4-2 loss to the Pens was just the icing on the cake. 

For Sweeney and his staff — who have spent most of the last few months evaluating their roster and exploring any avenue to improve the product on the ice — it was a sobering setback for a team that was going full-speed ahead toward the postseason. 

“My approach, if you asked me and I was asked after the first period the other night, I was in a pretty good frame of mind,” Sweeney said. "You could ask me after the game — I wasn't. But that's just the wins and losses. And it doesn't change our daily approach.”

Even with Boston’s solid road win over the Senators on Saturday afternoon, it doesn’t necessarily come as much of a surprise that some of the pessimistic sentiment that emanated from the B’s faithful during a sluggish start has returned.

For however long both Marchand and Bergeron remain on the shelf, it’s to be expected that the Bruins will be staring at some tough sledding out on the ice, with the B’s likely looking to just tread water for now. 

But be it this frustrating state of limbo or the optics of Boston once again getting walloped by another Eastern Conference power in the Hurricanes on Thursday (outscored, 16-1, in three losses to Carolina this season), the sentiment sure seems to be spreading that any desire to buy at the deadline is a fruitless — and ultimately, short-sighted — venture. 

But even in wake of both Marchand’s suspension and Bergeron’s uncertain status, it doesn’t seem like Sweeney is diverting from his plan to add to this roster ahead of March 21, barring an outright collapse in the next few games.

"I mean, we're a committed organization to try and win,” Sweeney said on Thursday. “We've been that way since I've stepped foot in here. We've had some pivot points of attacking from a development standpoint.  … We have multiple plans in place that hopefully, we can add, as I've said, to this group.

“We have to evaluate. I think the five weeks leading up (to the deadline) are really important to where your team is at and what the trajectory of your team and the health of your team is. And we'll have to take that into consideration. And I think the vast majority of teams will look at it that way."

Granted, given everything we’ve heard from Boston’s top brass about the desire to make the most of however long this current window remains open (essentially, however long Bergeron remains on this roster), a fixation on being a “buyer” shouldn’t necessarily come as much of a surprise.

But also, given both the current constitution of this roster — especially the younger core in place — the notion of Boston suddenly changing gears and starting to sell doesn’t exactly seem like a pragmatic scenario either.

For as much as some B’s fans are championing Boston blowing things up and trying to punch its ticket to the Connor Bedard sweepstakes in 2023 as part of a home-run rebuild — simply selling off assets like Craig Smith, Brandon Carlo, Jake DeBrusk and others doesn’t push you into the territory of teams vying for a top-3 pick in next year’s draft.

Hell, even if you moved a guy like Marchand (which obviously ain’t happening) and Bergeron was to hang up his skates this offseason, I still think it’s highly unlikely this team tanks to a level where they find themselves in the same unfavorable tier as clubs like the Habs and Coyotes.

Because even if you remove that established veteran core of Marchand/Bergeron, the Bruins are still anchored by a:

• A top-5 defenseman in the NHL who doesn’t turn 25 until next December. 
• A dynamic winger capable of 40+ goals year in and year out who turns 26 in late May.
• A former Hart Trophy winner with full no-movement protection through 2025. 
• And a promising young goalie who could hamper any tanking efforts if he’s as good as many believe he is.

Simply put, unless this team goes full scorched earth and uproots even the still young pieces on this roster, the floor of the Bruins is high enough where any notion of tanking doesn’t make much sense — unless you’re ready for the Bruins to hover around the No. 10-15 picks each and every year in the draft.

And fishing for top-five picks doesn’t necessarily equate to proven success. 

Look no further than the upstart Rangers, who signaled an intention to blow things up back in 2018. Are they in the spot they’re in now after scooping up the No. 2 and No. 1 overall picks in 2019 and 2020, respectively?

It probably has more to do with free-agent adds like Artemi Panarin, coupled with the influx of young talent like Adam Fox and Igor Shesterkin — who were drafted by the Flames and Rangers, respectively, in the third and fourth rounds of their drafts.

Yeah, rebuilding in the NHL can kinda be a crapshoot. 

So no, the Bruins won’t be selling. But perhaps the most important question is whether or not it’s worth sacrificing future assets in order to help this current squad — when perhaps standing pat could offer some hope for a quicker retool in the coming years. 

Granted, the optics would be very tough if the Bruins were to simply ride out this season without much in terms of a game-changer added up front or on the blue line.

But if it leads to a scenario in say, 2023-24 where guys like Fabian Lysell and Mason Lohrei are added to that aforementioned core of McAvoy/Pastrnak/Hall/Swayman and an older Marchand? Perhaps that’s the easiest way to try and bridge the gap between this current Bergeron era and whatever lies ahead. 

(Even though, again, Boston’s future success still hinges on its ability to either draft, sign or trade for another legit top-six pivot in the near future). 

Ultimately, the true gauge when it comes to just how aggressive the Bruins are this deadline season might come down to just what kind of targets are out there.

If mid/late-20s players with term like J.T. Miller or proven star talents that can be re-signed (with some cap gymnastics) like Tomas Hertl can be had? Then the Bruins will absolutely be in the mix, giving them the ability to bridge some of that aforementioned gap.  

But if the cost to acquire a short-term, aging veteran like Claude Giroux, Mark Giordano or Joe Pavelski (all still very good players, but pure rentals nonetheless) is a first-rounder and one of Boston’s prized prospects, now might be the time for Boston to stand pat and build from within, rather than mortgage the future for just the slim hope of a few thrilling months this spring. 

So what’ll it be? Buy - or stand pat? 

As we said before, a lot can change in a hurry for this team.

“Even the first-place teams would say there are areas they can improve, they're going to try to improve. We're certainly no different,” Sweeney said when asked of any specific area of the roster that the Bruins are targeting at the deadline. "We evaluate our team all the time, depends on how healthy we are. The situations we are in — the movement of David going down to play with Haula and Hall has given us an uptick and balance in scoring. We want that to continue.

“Depth, impact and finding an impact player in any area — I don't think you're going to turn it down. You move another guy around. So if we can find the best players to help our club, that's what we're going to do. We definitely have, as an organization, identified some players that may or may not be available, but some teams might not see it that way. There are some teams still evaluating what they may do at the deadline as well.”

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The Krejci saga continues

While the 2021-22 Bruins have trudged through the peaks and valleys that come with an 82-game slog, it’s been relatively smooth sailing for David Krejci over the last couple of months. 

Not only is he back playing for his hometown HC Olomouc in the Czech Extraliga and producing (36 points in 42 games), but the 35-year-old pivot is also now representing his country on the Olympic stage, posting three points in three games so far for Czechia at the 2022 Beijing Games.

These days, it sure seems like Krejci is relishing his departure from the NHL ranks — and with the veteran pivot needing to pass through waivers in order to have any shot of rejoining Boston ahead of a playoff push, it sure seems like it’s time to stop with that narrative. 

But if you ask Krejci, it sure doesn’t seem like he’s ruling out a potential return to the only NHL club he’s suited up for. 

“Obviously if I had one year left on my deal, I would be in NHL now,” Krejci told the AP over in China. “It just kind of happened to work out that way. Things happen for a reason, I believe, so I’m here now. I’ll try to take the most out of this opportunity and what comes after this, we’ll see.

Krejci added: “I’m here now. I’m going to focus on this tournament. I don’t know myself yet what’s going to happen, so I’m just going to play it out.” 

Of course, given the aforementioned waivers snag that would stand in the way of Krejci, say, just jumping ship from Olomouc and rejoining Boston before the cut-off date in March to be eligible for the postseason, it’s still extremely unlikely that Krejci is back in the next month or so. 

Sweeney more or less acknowledged that hurdle when asked if he’s had any conversations with the Bruins’ longtime center recently - with plenty of other teams likely licking their chops at the prospect of snagging Krejci before he falls to Boston on the waiver wire. 

"I haven't had since the first of the year had any discussions with David, in terms of what his plans were,” Sweeney said. “He made an indication at the end of the holidays as to what he was doing. And I haven't had any contact with him. 

“I know he's been asked questions. So he's answered them. With that regard, if the opportunity presents itself, I'm sure there'll be several teams that will have the same conversation we would. But I haven't had any.”

Decision day coming soon for Hertl?

If the Bruins are indeed looking to buy instead of sell ahead of the trade deadline, there actually need to be attainable targets out on the market for Sweeney to target.

And if the Bruins are indeed looking to add a key cog to this roster — both for this season and potentially in the years ahead — a true star pivot like Tomas Hertl continues to make plenty of sense.

But will Hertl even be available ahead of the March 21st trade deadline? 

Speaking earlier this week, acting Sharks general manager Joe Will said that the plan was for San Jose to do everything in its power to sign Hertl (a pending UFA) long-term, noting that the feeling was mutual between player and organization.  

“The one thing we have in common is that Tomas loves being a Shark, and we love having Tomas here,” Will said, adding: “We’re going to do everything we can to try and make that happen. It’s challenging in an environment where there’s a flat salary cap. And that just makes it a little bit more complex in how you get to the end result. Tomas is a big part of our team. We’d like to keep him.”

Despite Will’s rose-colored glasses on the situation, Hertl was a bit more pragmatic regarding his approach this summer as a UFA. 

“I’m not like saying anything 100 percent because nothing is ever 100 percent,” Hertl said when asked of his interest in staying in San Jose. “I just say this is my team now when I’m playing and I’m doing all I can. We’ll see what happens in four weeks or the rest of the year. I want to just focus on playing.”

Yes, the odds still say that the Bruins will look to add to this roster in the coming weeks. But will Boston actually swing for the fences? It might depend on whether or not players like Hertl or J.T. Miller are even available.