The Bruins just got a little deeper on defense. According to TSN's Pierre LeBrun, Boston has signed Anton Stralman to a one-year deal worth $1 million.
(UPDATE: The Bruins officially announced the deal Wednesday morning.)
Skate Pod: Waiver mania and season predictions
The 36-year-old Stralman was in Boston's training camp on a PTO (professional tryout). He had a good camp and a couple strong preseason performances that made it clear he still had something in the tank and could help the Bruins out.
Stralman is entering his 16th NHL season. His best years came in Tampa Bay from 2014-19, when he twice finished top-20 in Norris Trophy voting. He spent last season with the Arizona Coyotes, where he had 23 points in 74 games while playing 21:20 per night.
Stralman provides some key depth on the right side of the blue line, and his veteran poise is a welcome addition to a group that saw a few other defensemen hit some rough patches this preseason.
With Stralman now officially in the fold, the Bruins have seven healthy defensemen on their active roster. There's also Matt Grzelcyk, who appears to be getting close to being game-ready as he recovers from offseason shoulder surgery. Grzelcyk has been a full participant in practice since late last week.
The Bruins are certainly going to have a bit of a logjam on the blue line when Grzelcyk does return, and then especially when Charlie McAvoy returns, which will likely be around late November/early December.
What move or moves they potentially make at that time will be a bridge they cross when they have to, though. General manager Don Sweeney has clearly adopted a philosophy that you can never have too many defensemen, as he has referenced numerous times this offseason and preseason the staggering number of injuries the Bruins have had on defense in recent years.
It remains to be seen if Stralman will be in the Bruins' opening night lineup. For the last couple days, he has been practicing with Grzelcyk on what looked like the fourth, extra pair. However, he skated plenty with Hampus Lindholm earlier this preseason and was also paired with Jakub Zboril recently, so it wouldn't be surprising if he does slot in right away.
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