McQuaid a tough act to follow
B’s deal vet defenseman to NY
When a team trades its seventh or eighth defenseman on the eve of training camp, it usually barely registers in the locker room.
But Adam McQuaid, dealt yesterday to the New York Rangers for a fourthround pick, a conditional seventh-round pick and defenseman Steven Kampfer, meant a lot more to the Bruins than what his spot on the roster was to be.
Quiet and thoughtful off the ice, McQuaid was ferocious and fearless on it. One of the toughest fighters in the league, he would drop the gloves with anyone, and fling himself in front of shots that would make the 17,565 Garden faithful wince in unison. Then he’d get up and do it again.
McQuaid was one of the six remaining players from the Bruins’ 2011 Stanley Cup champions. He was a heart-and-soul guy, the kind of player you win with. That was not lost on both the players or the man who traded him.
“It’s a very difficult day for me personally and for the organization as well,” general manager Don Sweeney said. “We want to thank Adam. He’s a tremendous Bruin and a tremendous teammate. It was a very difficult decision.”
Sweeney had been debating whether to keep the eight NHL-ready defensemen that gave the B’s enviable depth or to pare it down. He’d gotten calls on McQuaid at the start of free agency on July 1, but held off. Yesterday, he acted with McQuaid scheduled to travel with a split squad to China for its 10-day excursion, giving the defenseman the opportunity to get to the Rangers at the start of their training camp.
If he remained here, McQuaid could very well have been a healthy scratch on the right side behind Charlie McAvoy, Brandon Carlo and Kevan Miller. That was the case last year, and it was not a comfortable situation for anyone.
“We do what’s best for the organization, first and foremost, that won’t change,” said Sweeney. “But he went through a tough time in November and December when he was healthy and wanted to play. It’s always going to be merit-based and ultimately that’s the coach’s decision, but it was a tough stretch.”
Coach Bruce Cassidy goes all the way back to Providence with McQuaid a decade ago.
“Going into the year, we would have had eight defensemen and six would play. It wasn’t automatic that Adam would have been one of the two out, but if it worked out that way it would have been difficult. Even for the one now it will be difficult,” said Cassidy. “And it is tough to see him go. It’s been 10 years, since back in Providence. I paired him with Matt Lashoff back in the day and he became a shut-down defenseman for us. We even played him on the second power play, tried to grow his offensive game, so there’s been a lot of work over the years with Adam.
“Today was a tough morning, but hopefully he gets a great opportunity to play in New York. And we’ll miss him, mostly as person and as a teammate.”
According to hockeyfights.com, McQuaid fought 55 times for the Bruins and there are not a ton of L’s on his record. The fight game has waned in recent years, but Sweeney believes the Bruins are still tough enough.
“I’ve always believed in team toughness,” said Sweeney.
The move gives the Bruins more salary-cap flexibility. McQuaid has one year left at $2.75 million, while Kampfer comes in at $650,000, giving the team more than $5 million in cap space available.
Yet it was too soon to look on the bright side of the trade.
“It’s a tough day,” said Brad Marchand, who started in Providence with McQuaid. “It’s very disappointing, losing Quaider. He was an incredible teammate for a long time. When you look around the room, you want guys like him. He’s just an incredible guy off the ice, in the room, a great friend. On the ice, he was an incredible teammate. He’ll do anything for team and for each and every player.
“Unfortunately it’s part of the business. This is the game we play and these are the things that happen. But we’ll never forget him as a teammate or friend, everything we’ve all gone through in the years. It’s hard losing him.”
Captain Zdeno Chara echoed Marchand.
“He’s been a part of this team for a long time. He’s been such a tremendous friend, teammate, leader, so it’s a very unfortunate part of the business,” said Chara. “But we all wish him the best, and he’s that type of a guy and player that he’ll have that kind of success no matter where he’s going to be. It’s hard to see your friend be gone, but he’s not out of our lives. We’ll still be in touch and still be friends.
“But it’s one of those things that’s part of the game. Very unfortunate.”