With nine days remaining until the NHL 3 o’clock trade deadline on March 3, things are starting to heat up around the league. Two of the top teams in the Eastern Conference have already each made a trade to make themselves better and gear up for a long postseason run.
On Feb. 9, the New York Rangers acquired Vladimir Tarasenko and Niko Mikkola from the St. Louis Blues. That was the first of many trades that will involve the Blues, who sent Ryan O’Reilly and Noel Acciari to the Toronto Maple Leafs. While those teams were busy adding impact players to their roster, the Boston Bruins and general manager (GM) Don Sweeney has been working the phones at Warrior Ice Arena, their practice facility in Boston.
Related: Bruins’ Trade Partners If They Move Their 2023 1st-Round Pick
Currently holding the NHL’s best record at 43-8-5, the jury remains out on what Sweeney should do at the deadline. There are needs that the Black and Gold have as they could use a bottom-six forward, mainly a right wing, and some help on defense. While it appears that they are set on the left side of their defense, they continue to be linked to two of the top names on the market. If the Bruins do add, here are two trades that could set them up for a long postseason run in the loaded Eastern Conference.
Bruins Acquire Chychrun & Bjugstad From Coyotes
Arizona Coyotes defenseman Jakob Chychrun has been a name that has been talked about for some time about being involved in a trade, but now it seems that he could very well be on the move. Several teams have been linked to him, including the Bruins, and what an addition he would be.
On Feb. 11, the Coyotes announced that he was being held out of the lineup for trade-related reasons, and has been on the sideline since. The 16th overall pick of the 2016 Entry Draft has seven goals and 21 assists in 36 games this season. He has missed some time with injuries, which has been an issue in the past as he has played in just 83 games in the last two seasons.
Despite the injuries, the 24-year-old would be a big addition to the Bruins’ defense. He plays a solid two-way game and is a minutes eater averaging 23:16 a night this season in all situations. The Bruins already have a left side of Hampus Lindholm, Matt Grzelcyk, and Derek Forbort with Jakub Zboril currently the seventh defenseman. Chychrun, however, comes with term remaining on his contract. He is signed for two more years with an average annual value (AAV) of $4.6 million. Adding him would help with some recent defensive zone problems that Boston has had recently.
The asking price for Chychrun is already high with first-round draft picks, a young player, or a top prospect. If Sweeney is going to pay that price, why not go all-in with Arizona? Needing a forward, the Bruins getting Nick Bjugstad in the deal solves two needs with one trade.
This season, Bjugstad has 13 goals and 10 assists in 57 games for the Coyotes with 107 shots landed on the net. The 6-foot-6, 209-pound 30-year-old would be just what the Bruins need as a right shot who can play both in the middle and on the wing. He will be an unrestricted free agent (UFA) following the season, but his $900,000 cap hit makes him a big draw.
This type of deal would require the Bruins’ first-round pick going to Arizona along with a top prospect, Fabian Lysell or Mason Lohrei, a roster player, even a young one. Going all-in and moving your first-round pick for Chychrun seems like the way to go, but if that can’t happen, there’s another way Sweeney could go to fill needs.
Bruins Get Gavrikov & Barbashev in Two Separate Deals
The Bruins have been linked to Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov, a left-shot. Boston acquiring Gavrikov gives them another defensive defenseman as he has just three goals and 10 points in 52 games for the Blue Jackets, but he is a shot-blocking machine with 89 blocks this season and he’s dished out 56 hits. He’s averaging 22:20 a night in 2022-23, but the asking price for the 27-year-old is reported to be high, including a first-round pick and possibly a prospect or more picks. For me, that seems high, but apparently not for Sweeney if that does indeed end up being the haul. The price needs to be right.
The problem with that is he’s a UFA following the season and his cap hit is manageable at $2.8 million. Getting him gives the Bruins another shot-blocking defenseman that is a minutes eater and another penalty-killing option.
Related: Blue Jackets’ Gavrikov Makes Perfect Sense For Bruins
It’s unlikely that the Black and Gold get a forward from Columbus, but Sweeney could look to the Blues for that with veteran Ivan Barbashev, who would reunite with Jim Montgomery, who spent the last two seasons as an assistant coach in St. Louis. Like Gavrikov, Barbashev is a UFA following the season and comes with a $2.25 million cap hit.
The 27-year-old has 10 goals and 18 assists this season, but he would supply the Bruins would a scoring threat on the third line with Taylor Hall and Charlie Coyle and not have to worry about breaking up the top six. If needed, he could also slide up to the second line and is also a left-shot center that can be big in the bottom six. More than likely, a draft pick could get a Barbashev deal done.
It is likely that Sweeney adds at the deadline and making either of these moves goes a long way into adding depth for the rest of the season and into the playoffs. If Sweeney is going to all-in with his first-round pick, getting Chychrun from the Coyotes and possibly Bjugstad is the move to make with it. Gavrikov and Barbashev should be the fallback option, but one thing is clear, there is going to be an addition and even some subtractions to Boston’s roster in the next week.
In order to clear cap space, Sweeney will have to get creative, and moving Craig Smith, Mike Reilly, Chris Wagner or someone else will need to be done, along with most likely a pick to take one or more of those salaries off of their hands.
