The common thinking here in Boston has been that it’s unlikely the Bruins trade away one of their goalies before the March 8 trade deadline. It seems like it would be a bigger shakeup than general manager Don Sweeney would be willing to make for a team that is currently in first place in the Eastern Conference.
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Perhaps we shouldn’t be making any assumptions, though. On Friday’s episode of their “32 Thoughts” podcast, NHL insiders Elliotte Friedman and Jeff Marek not only entertained the idea of the Bruins trading Linus Ullmark, but suggested that there’s a thinking among some around the league that Sweeney might actually pull the trigger on such a deal if he can find a return he likes that meaningfully upgrades other areas of the roster.
“One thing about Boston, I think they’re looking for a center, I think they’re looking for a defenseman,” Friedman said (starting around the 17:30 mark here). “They don’t have picks. … I had a few people point out to me, the Bruins actually have players they can move. Now, there’s a lot of whispers about Ullmark. I’m really careful about this this time of year, because a lot of it becomes almost circumstantial evidence.
“…Teams out there do believe the Bruins are trying to upgrade their roster. And all you have to do is look at what they are capable of and say it’s not coming out of the draft. Do they really want to deal their top prospects, some of whom have already played in the NHL? I don’t think so. So, if they want to make changes, it probably has to come off their roster, and that’s why I think people are looking at Ullmark.
“Now, I don’t think it’s impossible. He has some control. But the whole thing is, if the Bruins are trying to win the Stanley Cup, then why would you subtract from one of your greatest strengths? The only thing I can think of there is if they get something so good that they just feel they have to do it. But I’d be very curious to see what that would be.”
Marek wondered if the Bruins’ goalie duo has become more of a luxury than a necessity.
“I understand the point about the area of strength with Linus Ullmark and Jeremy Swayman. Totally understand that,” Marek said. “But when you’re looking for pieces you can move, do you not look at that goaltending tandem and say, that’s not an area of strength, that’s a luxury? And when you’re trying to win a Stanley Cup, sometimes you have to say, ‘This can be used somewhere else. We don’t need the luxury item, because we need help over there.’”
“I completely understand,” Friedman responded. “And to be honest, Jeff, I think the Bruins might see it the same way. And they’re not an organization that’s afraid to make those kinds of decisions. They’re not afraid to make hard decisions. So, I do think you’re onto something there. I really do. It’s just a matter of, do they find something they like?”
Friedman mentioned the Bruins as one of the “four teams everyone’s looking at” when it comes to coveted defenseman Noah Hanifin of the Calgary Flames, along with the Florida Panthers, Tampa Bay Lightning and New Jersey Devils.
If trading away Ullmark were to be tied to acquiring Hanifin, it would likely have to be two separate trades or a three-team trade. The Flames wouldn’t seem to be interested in a goalie, although that could change if they trade away Jacob Markstrom. Ullmark also has a 16-team no-trade list and therefore would have some say over where he goes.
Friedman is right, though, that the Bruins would almost certainly have to move someone off the active roster in order to bring in anyone of note – not just because they have limited assets in terms of picks and prospects, but also because they have no cap space to fit in even a smaller contract.
Moving Ullmark’s $5 million to take on Hanifin’s $4.95 million is the kind of exact match that would at least make sense financially. Or they could target a center or scoring wing in that same kind of price range instead.
The question, of course, is whether the Bruins are ready to go all-in on Swayman being their No. 1 goalie and Brandon Bussi being their No. 2. Nothing can sink a team faster in the playoffs than goalie issues, and the Bruins would be betting that Swayman is ready to handle a workhorse load, something he hasn’t yet done at the NHL level.
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