The Bruins’ efforts to lock David Pastrnak into a long-term contract extension stands as the top priority for a franchise cognizant of the sizable endeavor that awaits in building a contender during the post-Bergeron era. But based on the B’s winger’s comments last week, one would think that Pastrnak signing on the dotted line is more of a matter of when, not if.
That being said, a carefree, jaunty soul like Pastrnak isn’t exactly one to churn up any negativity or doom-and-gloom narratives when it comes to his ongoing contract talks — nor was that pending payday at the top of his to-do list this summer, and for good reason.
And even though Don Sweeney certainly didn’t pour cold water on the good tidings Pastrnak presented when it came to his hopes of sticking in Boston for the foreseeable future, the Bruins’ GM did offer a more practical look at the poker game that usually presents itself when it comes to team and player/agents bridging the gap on a new deal.
While Sweeney and the Bruins are staying focused on getting a deal done as soon as possible, the team isn’t setting down any deadline for Pastrnak to agree to terms before the regular season commences.
"I don't think there's a concern,” Sweeney said. “David would be the only one to ideally speak to that. Perfect world, as we've referenced, (we) try and be aggressive to have him sign long-term as a lifelong Bruin — it's always been our goal. I think David shed a little light in terms of where he was at personally. And we respected that.
“I've had conversations, I'm going to continue to have conversations and I'd ideally like to get it done at the earliest point possible. And hopefully, he feels the exact same way, and his camp. So that's what our goal is. Outside of that, I'm not going to comment on anything else, other than that's ultimately what we'd like to do."
Of course, for as much as Sweeney isn’t putting pressure on Pastrnak and his reps when it comes to signing within the two-plus weeks that training camp is conducted — the writing is on the wall when it comes to Boston’s preference to check this off the to-do list before it carries over into the fall and potentially endures as a distracting, season-long narrative.
Granted, for as much as Pastrnak has expressed his preference of remaining in this market — and the Bruins certainly reciprocate that admiration — the B’s top sniper is also due for a sizable bump in pay from his bargain-bin $6.66 million annual cap hit that he secured from 2017 through the remainder of this 2022-23 campaign.
One of the key pillars that has kept Boston’s current contention window ajar has been the franchise’s ability to maintain cap flexibility by way of getting its star talents to sign on the cheap — be it Pastrnak’s current contract, Patrice Bergeron’s last two deals ($6.875 million AAV from 2014-22 / $2.5 million AAV in 2022-23) or Brad Marchand’s current agreement ($6.125 million AAV from 2017-25).
The Bruins would certainly welcome a situation in which Pastrmak once again does his team a solid when it comes to inking a contract with an annual payout below that $10+ million threshold.
But Sweeney isn’t looking at those previous Bergeron/Marchand deals as any barometer in terms of how Boston is hoping these current talks with Pastrnak will end up — especially given the state of a market across the league in which star forwards are routinely securing hefty contracts, and even younger, unproven skaters like Tim Stutzle ($8.35 million) are getting locked in with major deals.
"You're right — the salary cap is a dynamic in any of these equations that we're trying to put together,” Sweeney said. “I don't think there's much of a comparison between where Patrice and David are in their careers. We're grateful that they're still playing hockey at the level they're capable of. David's a young player and in the prime of his career.
“I think when Patrice and David Krejci signed their contracts, they were market-value deals, and I expect us to approach the same, not unlike all of our other players, whether it's Charlie McAvoy or anybody else. Everybody has, whether you've got arb rights, UFA rights, RFA rights, all the things that fall in line and I think we've been pretty consistent of trying to put marketplace deals.”
OTHER NOTES FROM SWEENEY’S PRESS CONFERENCE ON DAY 1 OF TRAINING CAMP
The Bruins are expecting to roll out a younger lineup for Saturday’s preseason opener against the Flyers, with Jim Montgomery noting that the B’s intend to give blue-chip prospects like Fabian Lysell some extended reps.
After lighting the lamp a few times during the 2022 Prospects Challenge up in Buffalo last weekend, Lysell has impressed the B’s top brass with his offensive instincts despite his age (19) and lack of reps against competition in the pro-hockey ranks.
“I think the more time he spent in North America and the ice surfaces, I think he's understanding where he can attack,” Sweeney said of Lysell. “He likes to attack — likes to take (the puck) one-on-one in any space. ... In European rinks, he has more opportunity to stay wide. But you saw him attack inside the dots, getting to the front to attack the net. Puck management, some of the things we talk about with young players, certainly needs to be incorporated into his game and recognition of some situations.
“I just like his attacking mentality with speed and skill. Wasn't shy to shoot the puck when it was on his stick or making a play. I think the guys that he'll spend some time with in camp will appreciate it ... I think he's done a good job of acclimating, overall.”
———
The Bruins announced their full training camp roster on Tuesday night, featuring little in terms of surprises:
Forwards: Joey Abate, Samuel Asselin, John Beecher, Patrice Bergeron, Justin Brazeau, Charlie Coyle, Jake DeBrusk, Nick Foligno, Trent Frederic, J.D Greenway, A.J. Greer, Curtis Hall, Taylor Hall, Joona Koppanen, David Krejci, Jakub Lauko, Vinni Lettieri, Fabian Lysell, Brad Marchand*, Marc McLaughlin, Georgii Merkulov, Tomas Nosek, David Pastrnak, Matthew Poitras, Craig Smith, Oskar Steen, Jack Studnicka, Luke Toporowski, Eduards Tralmaks, Alex-Olivier Voyer, Chris Wagner, Pavel Zacha
Defensemen: Jack Ahcan, Victor Berglund, Frederic Brunet, Michael Callahan, Brandon Carlo, Connor Carrick, Connor Clifton, Josiah Didier, Jackson Edward, Derek Forbort, Matt Grzelcyk*, Hampus Lindholm, Ryan Mast, Charlie McAvoy*, Mike Reilly, Dan Renouf, Jacob Wilson, Kai Wissmann, Nick Wolff, Jakub Zboril
Goaltenders: Francois Brassard, Brandon Bussi, Kyle Keyser, Keith Kinkaid, Jeremy Swayman, Linus Ullmark
*Injured player
As for PTOs (professional tryout contracts), the Bruins won’t be tossing out feelers for now-retired veterans like Zdeno Chara, Keith Yandle or P.K. Subban anymore. However, Sweeney did note that the B’s still have a pending invitation out there for a player and are still awaiting a response.
"We've put out a couple of PTOs, we've got one that's sort of pending,” Sweeney said. “And that's what I referenced. Hasn't made a decision yet. And a couple of others that chose other teams."
Perhaps the Bruins could be eyeing a local product like Brian Boyle, even though the team already has its fair share of fourth-line candidates. Wouldn’t also come as much of a surprise if the team is also looking for more depth on the blue line, especially a guy like Anton Stralman.