Sweeney willing to deal first-rounder
BUFFALO — In Don Sweeney’s two years as the Bruins general manager, he has restocked the club’s prospect pool, in part through deals that have netted him five first-round draft picks and four second-round selections.
So with a few holes that must be filled on the NHL roster, it should come as little surprise that Sweeney said he’d be willing to trade the Bruins’ first-round pick this year (18th overall) if a deal to help his varsity came along.
“It’s an effort to try and improve our hockey club,” Sweeney said yesterday during a break at the NHL scouting combine. “We have had a number of selections the last couple of years and we feel that they’ll all materialize into very good players for the Boston Bruins and I wouldn’t be doing my job if I didn’t explore what could improve our hockey club now in the shorter term. I owe it to our players and the organization to continue to do that. Whether or not it happens, I don’t know. Some people have looked at me sideways at times when holding three first-rounders (in 2015) and not being able to do something at that point in time. The right deal didn’t take place. I can’t say that it’s going to at this time as well, but it’s certainly an area I’ve looked at that if we can improve, then we would move it.”
The B’s shopping list is pretty obvious. They need a top six left winger and a left shot defenseman. Depending on what Sweeney does with restricted free agent Ryan Spooner, they might need a third line center. Backup goaltender is still unsettled.
There are in-house candidates for all those spots.
At left wing, the B’s saw very good developmental years from Jake DeBrusk, Danton Heinen and Peter Cehlarik while Frank Vatrano would like to have a bounce-back season after his injury-marred campaign. And now the recently signed Anders Bjork is in the mix.
At left defense, Rob O’Gara and Matt Grzelcyk should be knocking on the door, with junior players Jakub Zboril and Jeremy Lauzon coming into the pro ranks next season.
At center, aside from Spooner there is Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson and Sean Kuraly. And at netminder, Zane McIntyre had a strong season in Providence though he was lacking in his time in Boston. Anton Khudobin, whose terrific stretch run offset a terrible start, is also in the mix.
It will be Sweeney’s job ultimately to determine which spots can be filled from within and which positions need veterans to help at least bridge the gap until prospects are ready.
“We have areas that we think internally we can address, or we hope to be able to address with the growth of our own players,” Sweeney said. “(But) I want to look for a player who can help us improve our club. There’s a couple of areas that I think we can and that’s what I’d be willing to do. Impact (at left wing), impact on the back end. To me, I want a player that moves our club further along.”
With the upcoming expansion draft for the Vegas Golden Knights, there is a different source of player movement and availability this year that doesn’t exist in other years. While the B’s could lose an Adam McQuaid or a Colin Miller, they are in better shape than some other teams, such as Anaheim or Minnesota, who are expected to move assets they can’t protect in order to get at least something for them.
Teams must have their protected lists in to the NHL by June 17 and then there’s a trade freeze until the Golden Knights’ team is unveiled at the NHL Awards in Vegas on June 21. There could be a flurry of significant activity before then.
“You have some teams that have some players that they might not want to just lose. We’re all going to lose a good player,” Sweeney said. “I think by design, the league did a very good job of allowing the expansion club in Vegas to piece together a very good hockey club. . . . But there’s some exploration going on by everybody. It’s just a matter of whether the deal prior to (the expansion draft) or after is one that fits the two clubs.”