Let’s make no deal
Sweeney doubtful on trades
As the Bruins made the overnight flight from Los Angeles to Dallas late Thursday and early yesterday, general manager Don Sweeney had plenty enough on his mind.
Sweeney had to be delighted with the Bruins’ recent play, especially the tremendous effort the players delivered in smothering the Kings, 4-1, at the Staples Center on Thursday night.
The gutsy win, which featured an excellent, teamwide third-period checking effort, gave the B’s a 2-1 mark on the California trip, and ran their record under interim coach Bruce Cassidy to 5-1-0.
The Bruins face the Stars tomorrow in the finale of the four-game trip before coming home to play five of their next six at the Garden.
And Sweeney was thinking, too, about the NHL trade deadline, and the possibility — the unlikely possibility, apparently — of the B’s making a move. With so few teams out of the playoff picture and thus becoming sellers in the trade market, it could be a slow year leading up to Wednesday’s 3 p.m. deadline.
Sweeney did indicate, though, there’s been an uptick in conversation.
“There has been a lot more chatter in the last little while, the last 2-3 days,” he said. “Deadlines do that. There are some teams that are willing, whether that’s hockey trades or just the rental side of it. There are a lot of teams that are still in the hunt. In the rental market, with the (Ron) Hainsey trade, the market has been set. The prices will be high.”
The 35-year-old Hainsey, a former UMass-Lowell defenseman who has played for six teams and will be an unrestricted free agent, was dealt Thursday by Carolina to Pittsburgh for a secondround pick and a minor league forward.
Because there may be limited talent available and the prices will be high, Sweeney indicated the Bruins may stay out of it.
“I haven’t been overly aggressive to say that I would (make a trade),” he said. “I’m sort of doing my due diligence on which players will be available with a better understanding of what the costs are going to be. I haven’t been necessarily 100 percent saying I’m going to (make a trade). For me, it’s probably erring on the other side of it, saying we may not.”
Sweeney reiterated he is reluctant to trade any of the impressive group of prospects the club has gathered the past two years.
“You never say never,” he noted, and he might be willing to move a youngster to bring in a good veteran who could help the team for more than one year.
“We have some depth from a prospects standpoint,” said Sweeney. “I’m pretty consistent that we’re not giving up (those guys). We committed to the draft and (are) developing the newer guys. When they’re ready to play, they’re going to impact our lineup.
“That being said, if there is a deal or opportunity to improve this club with somebody who will probably be with us, rather than on the pure rental side, then I’d definitely explore it.”
Asked to prioritize team needs, Sweeney focused on a quality left defenseman and a winger who could provide third-line scoring, and then ticked off a long list of young players in Providence or the amateur ranks he expects to be NHL contributors.
The most interesting may be Boston University right defenseman Charlie McEvoy, the B’s 14th overall pick in 2016, who is expected to turn pro when the Terriers’ season ends. His teammate, center Jakob Forsbacka-Karlsson, could do likewise.
“We might be in a position to add these players,” said Sweeney. “It’s a long way from Craig Janney and Bob Joyce coming in (directly from college to the Bruins in 1988 to play key roles in the playoffs), but you never know. Chris Kreider did leave (BC), went to the Rangers and played well. But there’s no question it’s a big jump.”
Still, seeing the dynamic McEvoy in a few weeks might be more exciting for B’s fans than the team adding somebody at the deadline at a prohibitive cost.
‘I haven’t been necessarily 100 percent saying I’m going to (make a trade). For me, it’s probably erring on the other side of it.’ — DON SWEENEY Bruins GM