On the Boston Bruins …
- Craig Custance of ESPN: Bruins GM Don Sweeney said again that their preference is to re-sign Loui Eriksson.One issue that might be getting in the way of that is that Brad Marchand’s contract expires after next season.Marchand has already set a career high in goals and has an 82-game pace of 44 goals. The Bruins wanted and needed more from Marchand after they traded Milan Lucic, and they got it. He’ll be getting a raise from his current $3.4 million salary.
Multiple sources have said that both sides anticipate that they will get serious about a long-term deal this offseason. If Eriksson gets $6 million a year on his new contract, it bodes well for Marchand, and could be the starting point for him. The Bruins will have to be careful as they also have Patrice Bergeron at $6.875 million and David Krejci at $7.25 million.
“You never doubt Brad’s will to win and play well,” Sweeney said. “He’s an internally motivated kid, which we love. He put himself on the World Cup radar. I think he’s just a really valuable player for us, he’s proving it to the whole league now.”
- Joe Haggerty of CSNNE: (mailbag) Holes in their current roster include a top-3 defenseman, top-six right winger and maybe a bottom-six gritty, veteran forward.They will likely move Loui Eriksson as they don’t really want to go five- or six-years at around $6 million.If someone is going to blow the Bruins away with an offer for Zdeno Chara, they would have to entertain it. The 38-year old may be better off being a No. 3 or No. 4 defenseman playing 20 minutes a night. If the Kings or Blackhawks want to make a big offer, they would have to consider it. Chara has no-movement clause, but he might waive it for a true contender. If the Bruins trade Chara, they would fall out of the playoff race.
The Bruins would prefer Eriksson on a three or four year deal, but Eriksson could easily get five or six years on the open market. He would crazy to turn down the extra $12-$13 million.
- James Murphy of Bruins Daily: If the Bruins want to continue their ‘retooling,’ they need to consider trading Zdeno Chara by the deadline. They need to let teams know that he can be had for the right price. Chara has a $6.9 million cap hit, but his salary drops to $4 million in the 2017-18.
“It seems scary at first glance with his age and the money but when you really think about it, if you’re in a position to go all in right now and may not be after this, why not really explore it?,” the executive pointed out. “Chara’s not what he used to be but he’s still one of the better defenders in the league and could be a great final piece to the puzzle.”
- Eric Wilbur of the Boston Globe: Loui Eriksson is currently second on the Bruins in scoring, and has his sixth 20-goal season in the NHL. The Bruins only two options are to either sign or trade him. Letting him play out the season and see what happens isn’t a very good option.
“I’d like to keep Loui, period. Just like the guys that have left us I would have loved to have kept,” head coach Claude Julien said earlier this month. “So those are things that, as a coach, I’d like to have Looch. I’d like to have Hamilton, other guys, sure. But we couldn’t keep them for different reasons.”
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