Backes won’t play in AHL
No storybook ending, but vet left his mark
David Backes will not be working his way back to the Bruins by playing for their minor league affiliate in Providence, that much was made clear on Thursday.
As the mystery continued to build as to whether or not the veteran would report to the P-Bruins, who were returning to practice themselves on Thursday after the American Hockey League All-Star break, Bruins’ GM Don Sweeney released a statement reading that it was not going to happen.
“After speaking with David, we have agreed that it is in the best interest of David and the Bruins for him not to play in Providence at this time. David is fit and able to play, but in order to preserve all potential options for both David and the Bruins moving forward, we have decided this is the best course of action,” said Sweeney.
The statement suggests the relationship between the player and team is as amicable as it can be right now, with the team treating the highly regarded veteran with as much respect as he’s earned over his career. Sweeney was traveling on Thursday and was not available for further comment or clarification, though coach Bruce Cassidy did say that the veteran, waived two weeks ago after playing in just 16 games in this season that was marred by another in a series of concussions he has suffered with the Bruins, was not under suspension. He is in the fourth of a fiveyear deal worth an average annual value of $6 million and he’ll continue to collect on that.
While it’s safe to assume Sweeney had explored trade options for the 35-year-old Backes before waiving him, perhaps something else can shake free as the Feb. 24 trade deadline approaches. If they’re able to move the contract, it will most likely come with some pain for the B’s. Last summer the Maple Leafs had to give up a firstround pick to Carolina in order for the Hurricanes to take on the final year of aging veteran Patrick Marmuch leau’s contract at $6.25 million. The ‘Canes then bought out Marleau, who later signed with the Sharks.
If the B’s can’t move the contract, Backes could sit the rest of the season and then, presumably, the B’s could buy him out in the summer. If that was the case, it would cost the B’s $4 million against the cap next year and then another $1 million the following season. Backes could also retire, though it doesn’t appear that that’s the route he’ll be taking.
Regardless of the direction this goes now, it’s pretty clear that Backes has played his last game with the Bruins, if it hadn’t been already.
Since the day he signed the five-year, $30 million deal in the summer of 2016, there was the possibility that this would not end well. He’d played a hard-rugged style throughout his career and it had already seemed that it was taking its toll on him late in his career with the St. Louis Blues, for whom he was a beloved captain.
But while Backes may not have given the B’s every penny’s worth of the deal, he was not a classic bust. In his first two years, he brought his more vocal style and added it to the already strong leadership group, helping to bridge the gap between the older veterans who’d won a Stanley Cup in 2011 and some of the younger players coming into the system like Sean Kuraly and Brandon Carlo. He was very
a part of the B’s rebuild on the fly as the team returned to the playoffs in 2017 after a two-year hiatus.
Last year, however, his role with the team became less and less prominent. He endured his first healthy scratch as a Bruin and sat out intermittently. He wasn’t completely done, however. His insertion into the lineup in Game 2 of the first-round series against Toronto helped turn that series around. He also made positive contributions in the series wins over Columbus and Carolina. He was a healthy scratch, however, in Games 6 and 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals against his former team, which was a bitter pill to swallow.
Still, with his chance to secure a regular spot in the lineup for this season looking like a long shot, Backes nevertheless went back to work in the summer, hiring a new skating coach and lookwith
ing somewhat reborn in the preseason.
But on Nov. 2, he suffered a concussion in a frightening collision with Ottawa’s Scott Sabourin. The latest head injury had Backes himself contemplating retirement before seeking another opinion from a Detroit-area specialist. After that visit, he felt comfortable enough to continue playing.
In his first game back on Dec. 1 after missing a month the concussion, he scored the game-winning goal in the Bruins’ 3-1 win over the Montreal Canadiens. But he played only seven more games for the B’s, six of which he saw fewer than 10 minutes of ice time. With his hefty salary spending most game nights on the ninth floor, it was obvious that the situation could not continue.
But while the ending wasn’t storybook, Backes did leave his mark on this team.
“Obviously, the situation, respectfully, I’m not going to comment on it because I don’t know (all the details) of it,” said Patrice Bergeron. “That being said, obviously, he’s had a huge impact, on and off the ice. Off the ice, the way that he handled himself as a leader, I’ve learned from, so we’ve all learned from him. We’re great friends and we wish him all the best.”