It's Day 3 of NHL free agency and the two biggest names on the market -- defenseman Alex Pietrangelo and forward Taylor Hall -- have not yet signed.
Bruins general manager Don Sweeney said Saturday that he had not talked to Pietrangelo's camp, citing the fact that the B's already have Charlie McAvoy and Brandon Carlo on the right side of their defense.
He didn't comment either way on Hall, but according to reports, the Bruins are very much "in" on the 2018 Hart Trophy winner as a couple other suitors reportedly drop out.
The most significant update Sunday comes from Adrian Dater of Colorado Hockey Now, who reports that the Bruins and Nashville Predators are the "two most likely teams on Hall's shortlist."
In that same report, Dater says that the Colorado Avalanche, previously believed to be one of the favorites for Hall, are now out after trading for Brandon Saad.
The Columbus Blue Jackets, another team once believed to be in the mix, are also now out, according to a report from the Columbus Dispatch, as they are now expected to focus on their own players, particularly Pierre-Luc Dubois, and not spend to the cap ceiling.
Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reported on Friday that the Bruins were one of as many as 25 teams who had talked to Hall's camp, and David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period reported the Bruins had made Hall a "short-term contract offer."
The Predators' offer or expected offer is believed to be longer-term. Hall has said that he would be prioritizing winning over years and money this offseason, so it's possible he could choose Boston over Nashville despite the discrepancy in years if the annual money is similar and he thinks the Bruins give him a better chance to win. It's possible other teams are still involved, too.
The Bruins made their first significant move of free agency on Saturday when they signed right wing Craig Smith. Still, after losing Torey Krug to the St. Louis Blues, the consensus is that the Bruins, who have a little under $12 million of cap space remaining, need to do more if they want to be better than last year's team.
Adding Hall along with Smith would mean the Bruins have made significant upgrades to their forward corps in an effort to address their five-on-five and secondary scoring issues.
Defense would still be a question mark, but the Bruins could potential then try to trade another forward for a top-four defenseman. Jake DeBrusk's name is the one that has come up the most on that front, while some have theorized that the Vegas Golden Knights could be willing and able to move a defenseman (namely Nate Schmidt) if they end up signing Pietrangelo, something they are reportedly closing in on.
