It’s a tradition that’s as woven into the fabric of the Bruins and their fans’ collective identity as making the hungover trek to the Garden on Black Friday or complaining about the state of your goaltending corps.
Year after year, the start of the holiday season also marks the commencement of the annual rumor mill in the NHL.
And — surprise, surprise — it seems like the Bruins are always involved in every trade whisper out there.
Granted, some of that sentiment is a direct result of Boston’s standing as a contender for upwards of 15+ seasons.
In an effort to put a stout core of talent over the top, Don Sweeney has been active over the years when it comes to injecting talent into this roster just ahead of a fruitful playoff run.
You know the names over the years:
Rick Nash. Charlie Coyle. Marcus Johansson. Ondrej Kase. Nick Ritchie. Mike Reilly. Taylor Hall. Hampus Lindholm.
Some have been brilliant pickups for the Bruins. Others … not so much.
But as extensive as the list is when it comes to trade-deadline pickups for the B’s - the catalog of NHLers who have been linked to Boston (and ultimately didn’t don a black-and-gold sweater) is even longer.
You also know this list, especially if you’ve followed along with us over the years at BSJ.
The list goes on and on.
Even this season, with the 18-3-0 Bruins rolling through the rest of the NHL thanks to a deep lineup, it hasn’t taken very long for the first batch of rumors to start floating through the Twittersphere.
Just last week, an NHL executive told Boston Hockey Now that arguably the season’s top trade target in Patrick Kane “makes a lot of sense” for the Bruins.
And as teams start to slip further down the standings and begin to initiate rebuilding efforts, don’t be surprised to hear Boston get linked to other names like Bo Horvat or John Klingberg.
But for the first time in a long time, Bruins fans should be bracing for a very, very quiet deadline for this club on March 3.
Now, that’s not to say that the Bruins aren’t looking to find avenues to improve, nor am I saying that this team is so stacked that it simply doesn’t need a player like Kane.
Every team has flaws — and when factoring in the dwindling window of contention this team has — the Bruins aren’t going to be shirking their duties of evaluating the trade market just because they don’t think their team needs a lift.
Above all else, it’s Boston’s tight cap situation, coupled with years of shedding young talent in other trades, that will keep Boston hamstrung once the trade wire starts firing off.
Let’s use Kane as an example.
Could the Bruins use a future Hall of Famer like Kane in their top-six grouping? Um, yeah. What team wouldn’t?
But mind you, this is a Bruins team that is already using $1.3 million in LTIR cap space (per CapFriendly) in order to remain compliant while Derek Forbort remains on the shelf. And once Forbort is cleared to play in the next week, the Bruins will likely need to trade Mike Reilly (or another NHLer) just to remain under that upper limit.
It’s daunting enough for Boston to accommodate Forbort’s $3 million cap hit in the coming days. So how then do the Bruins expect to take on a contract like Kane’s ($10.5 million AAV)? Even a right-side stalwart like Klingberg ($7 million AAV) is too pricy, given Boston’s current fiscal flexibility.
And yes, the Bruins could offset some of that cap space by moving more contracts on its own roster, but that could require the B’s moving at least two or three useful assets still on the roster like Jake DeBrusk, Matt Grzelcyk, etc.
Yes, you could make the argument that a top talent like Kane would counter the loss of multiple contributors across this roster … but that’s still augmenting a hefty portion of your (already very good) lineup, just because you don’t have the cap room to accommodate a big contract.
And even if that’s the option that Boston has to take … does a team in Chicago that desperately needs a rebuild really want most of the return on a deal involving their franchise star to be mid or late-20s NHLers like DeBrusk or Grzelcyk?
At the very least, you’re also moving at least another first-round pick (or two) and one of your blue-chip prospects in Fabian Lysell or Mason Lohrei.
Yes, you could make the argument that — with Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci not getting any younger — now is not the time to stash away your prospect pipeline if a trade is available.
But as tempting as it is to focus solely on this promising 2022-23 campaign, the Bruins do need to keep an eye on the future.
And all things considered, the post-Bergeron era does have some foundations to build off of — especially with a defense anchored by Charlie McAvoy and Hampus Lindholm signed through the 2029-30 season.
After years and years of relinquishing valuable draft capital, the success of this current club will likely deter Boston from moving a promising youngster like Lysell/Lohrei — especially with a potential retool being on the horizon as soon as next fall.
For however long the Bruins remain as a top contender in the NHL, it’s a given that they will find their name tossed out in numerous trade rumors. And if the price is right, it wouldn’t come as surprise if Sweeney and Co. do pull the trigger on a depth trade or two to shore up this defense, especially on the right side.
But if you’re expecting the Bruins — spurred by the “last dance” narrative of this season — to go out and swing for the fences at the deadline, you’re probably going to be disappointed.
They might stand in the batter’s box. But I don’t think that bat is going off their shoulders.