Tavares hunt not irrational
Here’s how B’s find treasure
So the Bruins are in on John Tavares.
That sentence is true — hinted by general manager Don Sweeney on Saturday in Dallas and now confirmed — and it shows you how far this team has come in the NHL’s pecking order. For if the Bruins are at the table, that means there is a mutual interest. It’s not just Sweeney tapping on the front door asking, “Can I come in and play?”
And the B’s would not be doing their due diligence if they didn’t get involved when a player like Tavares becomes available. It rarely happens these days, and it may not happen this time, either, with Lou Lamoriello and the New York Islanders remaining the favorites to re-sign their captain. It’s been reported that the Isles, the only team that can offer as many as eight years, already have dropped an eight-year offer worth $88 million on him.
But Tavares has taken it this far so we have to assume, yes, there is a chance. And with the B’s sensitive to having their time wasted with dog-andpony shows (i.e. Jimmy Vesey), you have to believe they think so, too.
It does seems like a long shot, though.
The B’s would have to deal either David Krejci or David Backes, both of whom have another year left on their no-move clauses according to capfriendly.com. And though one source said the B’s have gotten some “unsolicited” calls on both of them from a still-unknown team, one would think a deal for either of them would be a salary dump that involved a good prospect going the other way, too.
So with that in mind, let’s do a little spitballin’ here — and, mind you, that’s all this is.
Would the St. Louis Blues take back Backes? As Backes’ physical maladies mounted here, it looked like the Blues made the right decision in not giving their former captain a long-term contract, except for one thing: They sagged after Backes left, missing the playoffs last year, and some have pointed to the loss of his leadership as one reason for the downfall.
It would be presumptive for the Blues to think Backes could step right back into that locker room and reassert his influence with a snap of the fingers, but it might be worth it if he also came with, say, center Trent Frederic, who could push for the third-line center position this year with the Bruins. Frederic, also, is a St. Louis native. The B’s, meanwhile, already have paid $16 million of the $30 million owed to Backes, which could make it more palatable for St. Louis.
If the B’s moved Backes, that would bump Krejci down to third-line center, which would give them the best 1-2-3 punch (albeit a very expensive one) down the middle in the league with Patrice Bergeron and Tavares at 1A and 1B.
And if Krejci is the player to be moved? Well, there is a certain team that has been in perpetual search for centermen. It plays north of the border and wears
Yes, the Montreal Canadiens. The archrivals rarely make trades with each other, and it might be difficult for any Bruins diehard to even think of throwing a lifeline to the Habs when they are floundering. But, again, Tavares is the type of player for whom you make exceptions. Would including Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson make Krejci’s three more years at $7.25 million worth it for Montreal?
If the B’s are somehow lucky enough to land Tavares — and it should be mentioned that there’s a mutual admiration society between Tavares and Bergeron from their time playing for Team Canada — then you can kiss goodbye what was the best line in hockey last season.
While it would be difficult to break up the connection that Bergeron and Brad Marchand have developed over the last seven years, you would think that David Pastrnak would be moved to Tavares’ line. It might be hard to woo Tavares by telling him that he’ll be playing with Jake DeBrusk and Player X, which is what the second line (if you could even call it that with Tavares) looks like right now.
Now, do I think any of this will happen? No, I don’t. It would involve too many moving pieces.
But that doesn’t mean the Bruins shouldn’t be in there taking their swings. And it should make for a fun few more days of wild speculation.