Bruins, Pastrnak ready to renew contract talks
PROVIDENCE — Bruins president Cam Neely said yesterday that general manager Don Sweeney and J.P. Barry, the agent for restricted free agent David Pastrnak, are expected to renew discussions on a new deal for the young star today.
Since the B’s made an offer early in the offseason of $6 million per year for six or seven seasons, there hasn’t been much negotiating going on.
“To be honest with you, we haven’t really gotten a response on what they’re looking for,” Neely said during the Bruins’ Fanfest. “I know when they talked early on, they had some parameters to work around, some comps that I think both sides felt were fair at that particular time, so an offer was made but there really wasn’t much dialogue after that. So I think it’s kind of pointless for us to negotiate against ourselves.
“But I feel confident we can get something done. I think David has expressed that he loves it here and wants to play here. We want him here for as long as it makes sense for us.”
When told of Neely’s comments, Barry responded in an email, “(The Bruins) are aware that the offers to date aren’t where we feel David fits in this marketplace. We plan to discuss an eight-year maximum term to see if we can find more common ground.”
The B’s offer was comparable to the deal that Nashville’s Filip Forsberg signed last summer, which was six years, $36 million. Since then the Edmonton Oilers signed center Leon Draisaitl to an eight-year deal worth $8.5 million per season and league MVP Connor McDavid to an eightyear extension worth $12.5 million per year.
Like Pastrnak, both Oilers will be coming out of their entry level deals when their new contracts kick in, Draisaitl this season and McDavid in 2018-19.
Neely said the Bruins’ payroll is not dictating what the team wants to offer Pastrnak.
“It’s not so much internal as it is what are some of the list of the recent ’16-17 signings of players under 25,” he said. “We’re looking at those comps, not so much our own team. What did those players do prior to getting contracts and how does it stack up against David? I know everyone’s talking about the Draisaitl contract, and rightfully so, they were waiting to see what was going to happen there. But that’s one player.”
Neely doesn’t believe the market has changed as much as some think.
“If it looks like an abundance of players and the market has shifted, then you should look at it, but if it’s one player that you’re hanging your hat on then I don’t know if that’s a market shift,” Neely said. “I don’t know if the market has really shifted as much as people think.”
Neely said a bridge deal — for less money and fewer years and would get Pastrnak to arbitration quicker — has not been discussed.
“There hasn’t been any dialogue,” he said. “Early on there was and then an offer was put out there and there hasn’t really been much back and forth for us to say where we’re going to head and what direction we’re going in. Until we really see what they’re thinking and what they’re looking for, then we can start the dialogue.”