One of the Bruins’ top targets out on the trade market is officially staying put.
Tomas Hertl — the 28-year-old pivot sought after by multiple clubs looking for an injection of talent down the middle — isn’t leaving the Bay Area, with the Sharks signing him to an eight-year contract extension with an annual cap hit of $8.13 million, per CapFriendly.
The Bruins have been a rather obvious suitor for Hertl’s services for years now, given their own looming question marks at the center position.
As much as Erik Haula’s strong play between Taylor Hall and David Pastrnak has assuaged some of the Bruins’ fears this season, pursuing Hertl was a move not just catered for this year as a mid-season boost — but as a potential replacement for Patrice Bergeron if the 36-year-old center does opt to hang up his skates this summer.
Yes, Don Sweeney’s efforts this deadline are clearly focused on fine-tuning this current roster ahead of what could be one of the last kicks at the can for this veteran core.
But Boston’s efforts over the last few years to bring aboard players with term or younger talent that could be retained (such as Taylor Hall last season, or Hertl this year if they could have swung a deal) falls in line with the B's long-term strategy of building sustained success in the post-Bergeron era — which can only be achieved by adding foundational pieces to the next generation of B’s talent like Charlie McAvoy, Hall, David Pastrnak, Jeremy Swayman and others.
Adding a player of Hertl’s talents and locking him down long-term would go a long way towards seeing that plan come to fruition.
But with Hertl opting to stay put, the Bruins are now potentially stuck at a crossroads just days ahead of Monday’s trade deadline — with Sweeney and Co. still looking to give at least one segment of this roster a shot in the arm.
Frankly, there’s no real way to sugar-coat it. Hert’s extension stands as a serious setback for the Bruins — and a mind-boggling move by the Sharks, if we’re being honest.
Perhaps Hertl just didn't want to uproot himself from the market that he’s played in for nine years. But opting to toss out cash at a 28-year-old forward instead of accelerating the obvious rebuild that this franchise needs is quite the headscratcher.
With Hertl costing $8.1 million against the cap through the 2029-30 season now, the Sharks (sitting at 26-25-8 in the standings) are set to have close to $50 million of their cap space committed to just six players over the foreseeable future — four of which are guys who are 37, 34, 32 and 31 years old.
Good luck with that rebuild.
As for the Bruins? Sweeney and his staff at least have multiple ways that they can shift gears ahead of the March 21 deadline, although it seems as though the market is starting to finally pick up.
Along with Hertl re-upping in San Jose, three other dominos fell on Wednesday — with the Panthers dealing Frank Vatrano to the Rangers for cap space and then trading for Habs blueliner Ben Chiarot, while Calgary relinquished three draft picks for Seattle's Calle Jarnkrok.
Now, if the Bruins are still prioritizing strength down the middle, things might start looking rather bleak now that Hertl is off the board.
Of course, Claude Giroux stands as the last big fish up front — but Boston is going to have to embroil into an ugly bidding war to try and pry the veteran star out of Philly, and it remains to be seen if Boston is even on Giroux’s list of potential destinations as he tries to contend for a Cup this spring.
And, as we noted this past weekend, even if Boston does manage to snag Giroux (either as a new 2C or potentially at 1RW next to Brad Marchand and Bergeron), it’s a short-term measure that absolutely helps this team in the present, but doesn’t offer the long-term security that a player in his prime like Hertl would have presented if he was indeed on the market.
As for other centers? Sure, guys like Andrew Copp could be had and might be intriguing pieces on this roster. But they don’t necessarily move the needle quite like the two pivots mentioned above.
Now, with that Hall-Haula-Pastrnak trio still showing no signs of slowing down, the Bruins could opt to table those concerns regarding their center pipeline for now and focus instead on either defense or scoring pop on the wing.
Based on the reports of Boston still hovering around Jakob Chychrun out in Arizona, it appears as though the B’s are still on the prowl for a true top-four option to solidify this D corps. Although, after a replacement-level player in Chiarot went to Florida for a 2023 first-round pick, a prospect and a 2022 fourth-round pick, I shudder to think what kind of ransom the ‘Yotes are putting out there for a player under term like Chychrun. Even if Chychrun presents too steep a price for the Bruins to pay (if they even have the assets on hand to appease Bill Armstrong), the Bruins could instead target a pending UFA like Hampus Lindholm out in Anaheim.
On the wing, a player like Vancouver’s Conor Garland would cost a pretty penny as a cost-controlled, effective winger under contract through 2026 — but falls right in line with Boston’s preference of injecting impact players into this core that can be etched into the lineup beyond just one Cup run. But if Garland is, again, too pricy, then the Bruins have other options to turn to up front, even if it is other players on expiring deals such as Anaheim’s Rickard Rakell or Columbus’ Max Domi.
If the Bruins plan on setting their sights on the wing and the blue line, Bruins fans should take some solace in the fact that multiple options are still out there. As much as Boston would obviously love to add players like Chychrun and Garland, even depth pieces like Jacob Middleton can help this team out down the stretch.
The 2021-22 Bruins are a very good team. The 2022-23 Bruins could also be very good, barring a potential return for Bergeron.
But Hertl staying put sure feels like a bucket of cold water being poured on Boston’s plans of long-term contention in the McAvoy-Pastrnak Era. Whether it be the tantalizing potential of the Czech pivot slotting in at 2C for this year and next — or even taking the mantle of top-line center from Bergeron if he indeed retired this summer, Hertl’s decision hurts because it simply made so much damn sense for Boston.
Boston will remain active in the days ahead of March 21, and the odds point to Sweeney adding an upgrade or two that should, at the minimum, help the Bruins this postseason, if not a bit longer.
And who knows, perhaps Sweeney has the assets that can pry a Chychrun or a Garland out from their market, as unlikely as the former seems.
But amid all of the short-term gains that might be made in the next few days, it’s getting tough to ignore that Boston’s future down the middle is looking more and more like a stark Achilles heel — destined to plague this franchise sooner rather than later.
Hertl would have eased those fears a great deal. But now, it seems as though the Bruins will have to continue to keep their lures in the water, hoping and praying for a nibble.