So while the cup hangover may not be over (especially with a 156k bar tab), it is about time to start looking at next year.

Looking at this seasons team, there will presumably only be one retirement, that being Mark Recchi. The Bruins also have most of our existing roster under contract for next season. Only Michael Ryder, Thomas Kaberle and Shane Hnidy are going to be unrestricted free agents, while Brad Marchand is going to be a restricted free agent.

It is fair to assume that Marchand will be resigned. Kaberle and Ryder will be interesting to see, and who honestly cares about the "sheriff" (really like the guy, but how much can we expect him to contribute?). For the sake of this, let's assume that Marchand is signed to a 2.5 million dollar deal. Lines would probably look like this.

Lucic - Krejci - Horton

Marchand - Bergeron - Seguin

Peverley - Kelly - ________

Thornton - Campbell - Paille

Chara - Seidenberg

Mcquaid - ________

Boychuk - Ference

Thomas

Rask

Total salary - 50.39 million

Reports today are that the cap next year is going to be set at 64 million, leaving the team with just under 14 million in cap room. In my humble opinion, Kaberle is going to get around 3.5-4 million, and Ryder will get 2.5 or so. The Bruins will have the cap room to sign both of these players, but whether or not they will be willing to pony up that kid of money for them is a totally different story. 

I don't think they will resign Kaberle. Yeah, they gave up a lot to get the guy. If and when they let Kaberle walk, it will basically mean they gave up Joe Colborne and a first round pick to have a guy on the roster that, honestly, didn't make them that much better. For some reason, Kaberle's game just didn't catch on in Boston. Not everone will be able to get into the flow with every team. However, the winning of the Stanley Cup makes Kaberle's walking a little easier to stomach. Anytime someone brings up the fact that Kaberle was a rental player, "meh, who cares, we won the cup."

Ryder, however, is a different story. I wouldn't be surprised to see Ryder sign a 1 or 2 year deal for 2.5ish. That would bring the team down to about 11 million in room.

For the other defense spot, we can pretty much pencil in Steven Kampfer. Put him on the second line with Adam Mcquaid, and you have 2 dynamic young players who play very different games, that will compliment each other nicely. Boychuk and Ference showed a lot of chemistry through the postseason, so lets agree that they will probably be the third line.

Kampfer on the second d pair only takes another 900k or so off the cap. Meaning that without making any major moves (apart from letting Kaberle walk), this team would go into the season with the entire roster having a good amount of chemistry, and 10 million dollars in cap room.

That cap room will be the key to the long term future, as after next season, the team will have to re-sign a bunch of players. David Krejci, Chris Kelly, Rich Peverley, Greg Campbell, Dan Paille, Shawn Thornton, Johnny Boychuk, Adam Mcquaid and Tuukka Rask all need to be re-signed after next season.

Bob Mackenzie's twitter says there are 2 trades.

Boston gets Tomas Kaberle

Toronto gets Joe Colborne, Boston's 1st round pick in 2011, and a conditional draft pick in 2011 or 2012 (It will be Boston's 2011 2nd round pick if the Bruins make the Cup finals or resign Kaberle before the draft, it will be a 2012 2nd round pick if the Bruins re-sign Kaberle after the draft, or it will be Boston's 3rd roud pick if Boston isn't in the cup finals, and Kaberle isn't re-signed.)

Then there is a second trade to Atlanta.

Boston gets Rich Peverly and Boris Valabik

Atlanta gets Mark Stuart and Blake Wheeler

Valabik is a big defensive d man, will probably make his residence in providence.

Peverly has 14-20-34 totals on the season. He has a cap hit of $1.3 million, through next year.
Wheeler has 11-16-27 totals. A cap hit of $2.2 million, and will be an RFA after this year.

I am not sure what the Bruins are going to do space wise. It seems like there are too many guys for not enough spots.

Along the back line, the first 2 Defensive pairs are set -

1st - Chara - Kaberle

2nd - Kampfer - Seidenberg

For the third defensive pair, it will be a combination of Ference, Boychuk and Mcquaid.

On the offensive end, there is a logjam on the third line. The 1st and 2nd lines are pretty much set.

1st - Lucic - Krejci - Horton

2nd - Marchand - Recchi - Wheeler

However, there are 5 guys vying for 4 spots on the 3rd and 4th line. You have Seguin, Peverly and Kelly that can play center or wing, and then you have Paille and Ryder as wingers.

The Bruins have a few different ways they can play the rest of the season.

They have plenty of guys that can be trade bait. The names of several guys have been thrown around, meaning that the Bruins are potentially not done dealing.

They could also stay put and leave themselves the cap room which could be smart with the amount of guys that are going to be looking at pay raises.

Long story short, in my opinion this team is a cup contender for this year as they stand now.

     So it is finally going to happen. After about a year of speculation, it seems as if the Tomas Kaberle to Boston rumors are finally going to come to fruition. According to puck daddy, the terms of the deal are being finalzed now, and it seems like he two teams are waiting for Boston to clear enough cap space to afford Kaberle for the rest of the year.

     The most likely scenario for this trade to happen as it currently stands would send Blake Wheeler and a draft pick to Toronto, and have Tomas Kaberle and possibly a pick coming back to Boston. Then, in order to clear cap space, Mark Stuart is possibly heading to the defending Stanley Cup champs, probably just returning picks and/or prospects. Lines would probably then look like this:

Lucic - Krejci - Horton

Marchand - Bergeron - Recchi

Ryder - Kelly - Seguin

Paille - Campbell - Thornton

Chara - Kaberle

Seidenberg - Kampfer

Mcquaid - Ference

Thomas

Rask

13th forward - Caron

7th Defensemen - Boychuk

     I would much rather see Adam Mcquaid in this line up as opposed to Johnny Boychuk. Nothing against Boychuk per say, I just feel as if he has been outplayed by Mcquaid. Also, this leaves the Bruins with a little more wiggle room under the cap, another 1.5 million or so, which means that Boychuk could potentially be moved by the deadline as well.

     That is a line up that I feel much more confident in as oppossed to the way the team is set up now. This line up is rolling 4 lines that can score, and 3 out of the 4 that can bring a significant amount of grit. Then look at the back end. 3 balanced pairs, all 3 of which have a very solid guy to take care of the defensive zone, and 2 out of the 3 have a legitimate puck moving defensemen. Oh yeah, you also have 2 of the 10 best goalies in the game.

     I hear a lot of people saying that this team doesn't have the ability to make a legitimate run at a Cup this year. My question is, what about their game makes them not a cup contender?

     Let's be honest, I am an optimist when it comes to the Bruins, always have been, always will be. Along with that, comes excitement about current times, but it also leads me to constantly look ahead. I just read a story on puck daddy about how after this season, Shea Weber may be on the move. Who knows what will happen with that over the next year.

     Now I did a post like this like 2 months ago, and now things are completely different.

     Looking ahead to next years squad, lets assume the same increase in salary cap from last year. Last year, the cap went from 56.4 million to 59.4 million, up 3 million dollars. So let's say that the cap goes from 59.4 to 62.4, not an unreasonable thought that it would grow at the same pace.

     So after this season, we have 4 free agents, Blake Wheeler, Michael Ryder, Brad Marchand and Mark Stuart. We will have 9 forewards, 6 defenseman, and 2 goalies that are seeing regular time this season, and will still be under contract next year. All of the contracts we have on the books total 46.7 million commited, leaving us with a modest 15.7 million dollars to play with as of now. Now, if you subtract bonuses and incentives that will be taken off of our cap room next year, and that number shrinks to 12.83 million. Now I must say, that if you asked me at the beginning of the season, I didn't see a lot of scenarios where I was ok with Blake Wheeler and Michael Ryder coming back to this team, but I must say, for the right price, I would be ok with both of them coming back.

     Michael Ryder was the guy that I was completely sure was on his way out of town. I couldn't stand watching him play during last years regular season. Then he had a pretty good post season, and I thought maybe. Ryder has had a somewhat quiet season, however without much notice, he is on pace for either 22 or 23 goals. He is a streaky scorer, so maybe he gets hot towards the end of the year, and puts in 25 this season. Players with similar numbers seem to be hovering in the 2 million dollar range. If I am the Bruins, I would definately bring Ryder back for that price tag. He is a guy that will be playing somewhere between the 2nd and 3rd lines, and would be able to produce some goal scoring. I think he is a great fit for that price tag.

     Then, we come to the issue of Blake Wheeler. He is on pace for 16 goals, and 35 points. Let's face facts, Wheeler is 4th line guy, maybe 3rd if someone is hurt. He should make roughly 1-1.5 million in his next contract. Problem is, I don't think Wheeler realizes that he is pretty bad at this whole "hockey" thing. He is probably on his way out the door.

     I look for Marchand to get about 1.5 million over 2 years or so. Take that in a second.

     Then comes the situation at the blue line. It has been the achillies heel of this team all year. They are a great shut down defense, probably the best in the league. However, they are obnoxiously incompitent at breaking out of their zone. They NEED a puck moving defenseman. This is where we could see one of our defesemen moving, probably one of the more physical ones. Steven Kampfer has been a huge, pleasant surprise (thats what she said), as he has shown some true puck moving potential. He looks like he has the same mindset as Matt Hunwick, except he can actually perform. So he is off limits. Seidenberg is the unsung hero of this team, and he is very affordable for the next 4 years. He is going nowhere. Ference is probably not going anywhere. So it comes down to Boychuk, Mcquaid or Stuart. One of those 3 are probably on their way out, to make room for a quality puck moving defenseman. All 3 of these guys are great, physical defenseman, however, their styles are too similar, and there is a logjam of physicality on the blue line. One of the will go for a puck moving d-man. I would venture to say it's probably not Boychuk, more likely Mcquaid as a trade, or Stuart this year at the deadline.

   Saying all of that, here we go... (note: number after the name is how many years player is signed for after this one)

Lucic (2) - Krejci (1) - Horton (2)

Ryder (?) - Bergeron (3) - Seguin (2)

Caron (2) - Savard (6) - Marchand (?)

Thornton (1) - Campbell (1) - Paille (1)

Chara (7) - Kampfer (2)

Seidenberg (3) - New guy (?)

Boychuk (1) - Ference (2)

Thomas (2)

Rask (1)

     So I guess we'll just talk about the elephant in the room, and that is the status of Marc Savard. Thing is, if Savard is playing, we are spending 4 million on a third line center. However, if Savard is not available, that frees up a spot, and cap room, when the organization has depth at center. I am writing Savard in, because obviously, this team is better with him in the lineup, and I would much rather have him playing.

     Now, assuming Marchand nets 1.5, and Ryder nets 2.5, that leaves us with about 10 million in cap room to pay for a new puck moving defenseman. Obviously, that isn't all going to be spent on a shiny new defenseman, but it leaves the Bruins room to move for one. They have 3 players looking for pay raises after next season, so they will probably only be able to spend like 3-4 million on a new guy, but that could get us a guy like an Ian White or a Christian Ehrhoff. Now I am not saying that the Bruins will sign one of those two for sure, but they will have cap room to make a run at a guy of that skill level.

     So long story short, if I am Peter Chiarelli, I would tell Blake to take a hike, sign Ryder for cheap, leave the rest of the forewards alone, and use our new found cap relief for a good young puck moving defenseman, even if it comes at the cost of one of our good young physical guys.

So I am heading down to the game on MLK day against the canes, and I am planning on purchasing a new sweater while im down there, but the question is, who should I buy.......

I currently have Lucic, Krejci and Chara for current bruins, and I am pretty much thinking I have narrowed it down to 1 of 3 players.... so i post the question to you guys....

should I get a Tuukka, Boychuk or Seguin sweater??

      So according to Puck Daddy, the salary cap is expected to rise between 2 to 3 million dollars next season. So, with that in mind, lets delve into potential roster moves for next year.

      Now, as I am always an optimist, lets assume that the cap is set at 62.5 million next season. Then here is what I would like to see...

Lucic - Krejci - Horton

Bergeron - Savard - Zherdev

Colborne - Seguin - Caron

Thornton - Campbell - Marchand

Chara - Seidenberg

Boychuk - Alexandrov

Sturt - Ference

Thomas

Rask

Here is how we got here...

      If we were to roll that line up by paying Marchand 1.5 million, giving Stuart 2 million, and give Zherdev (or other quality scoring foreward) 5 million, we would have a total salary of 56.7 million, leaving us 6 million in cap room to lock down Krejci, Campbell, Thornton, Boychuk and Rask.

     We would roll out that line up All while still having Jared Knight, Ryan Spooner, Ryan Button, Zach Hamill and Tommy Cross, amongst many others in the system.

     I like this situaton for a lot of reasons. The big club is incredibly loaded with talent, most of which was brought up through the system, and will be signed to this organization for the next 4+ years. If this were to happen, there is no reason to think that this team couldn't win multiple cups. Also, it leaves us with the depth in the system to adjust the roster as necessary. Thoughts?  

This is starting to be unacceptable. We have lost 3 out of the last 4 games, all against teams that come from either Florida or California, 2 states that are clearly not of the same passion as us New Englanders. Yet, does this team seem to show that they care? Absoloutely not.

Krejci and Lucic are the two lone bright spots here. On the other hand, the energy line is gobbling up way too much ice time, and they aren't scoring any goals.

Obviously Claude has lost touch with this team's strengths and weaknesses, and I for one am starting to feel impatient with his lack of coaching prowess. He has been the coach for 3 years and we have yet to see a cup?

Also, it seems like most of the players are in huge downfalls that make me question their places on this team. Hunwick is being Hunwick, Seidenberg hasn't been blocking anything for shots over the last couple. Zdeno hasn't had any physical presence, and I am definately wondering about his place as the captain of this team. Nate Horton has lost his early form completely. I definately think we should offer him back to Florida for Dennis Wideman, as we were the obvious losers in that trade. Michael Ryder needs to be traded immediately. Speaking of needing to be traded, Tim Thomas has completely come back to Earth, I am sure disappointed that the B's didn't ship him out while he was on a hot streak. Tuukka is also not the answer. We should be looking to Philadelphia to see if we can pick  up the services of Brian Boucher or Michael Leighton. Blake Wheeler has shown that he can play a second position, so he should be shipped out of town immediately. Tyler Seguin has looked absoloutely terrible. He is often lost on the ice. I feel like it is a clear fact that we made the wrong pick with that draft choice. Also, Jordan Caron is in the same boat. I think his name will start to be heard in trade talks. Meanwhile, a guy like Zach Hamill is stuck in Providence, when he has shown consistantly that he can produce at the AHL level, and warrants a call up. Andrew Ference should also be dispatched of. Productivity aside, he is quite the injury liability, which means he has way too high of a cap hit.

Then we get to the cancer of the dressing room. Marc Savard has no place on this team. He is cearly doesn't have what it takes to be a Bruin. He is both selfish and soft, and should be treated as such. I would jump at the opportunityto get a 10th round draft pick and a used puck bag for him.

Also, I feel like an obvious front office move needs to be made, and Cam Neely needs to step down. He has been a terrible addition to the front office, and has just starved the team of all goal scoring. He clearly needs to be let go.

I swear, I truly believe every word of this post. lol

So an interesting little tidbit stolen from puck daddy (http://sports.yahoo.com/nhl/blog/puck_daddy/post/Who-are-the-least-valuable-players-in-the-NHL-a?urn=nhl-274029#remaining-content).....   some sports finance company compiled a list of the 15 least valuable forewards and defensemen. None of our Bruins made the list of the 15 least valuable forewards (your welcome Michael Ryder), however, we have an entry coming in as the 15th least valuable defensemen in the league. However, it is not Andrew Ference.

I know, right.

Matt Hunwick is figured to be the 15th least valuable defensemen in the entire NHL. Now, it is no secret that I am not a huge Matt Hunwick fan... I think he is a defensive liability who tries to jump up into the offensive play far too often and doesn't have the ability to cover when he does so. However, he is making approximately 1.5 mil a season. I think that is appropriate compensation for what he brings to the table, as opposed to his (probably) defensive partner Andrew "ouch my body" Ference. Ference's contract is eating up 2.25 million in cap space, in other words, Johnny Boychuk and Adam Mcquaid combined. So my question I pose to this survey, if we had the ability to get rid of either Matt Hunwick or Andrew Ference, which one would we rather send packing. I feel like that is an easy question to answer, which means that one of these two guys is clearly less valuable than the other. But now I throw it out to you guys, which one of those two guys is less valuable?

The common consensus is that the last thing the Bruins need is another 4th line grinder. However, I don't think this is true at all. My thoughts on signing Brian McGrattan are that this is a team that is lacking in players who are able to drop the gloves with the heavy hitters in the league. Shawn Thornton, we get it, he is willing to drop with whoever whenever. However, Thornton, in my opinion, is a second tier fighter. Yeah, he can throw them, but he is not on the same level as the true goons of the league. The Bruins can use a guy who will have no problem going toe to toe with the Derek Boogards of the league. It also seems like they are trying to get Milan Lucic to shy away from the fistic abilities to a certain extent. So other than those two, who is truly known as a fighter (Blake Wheeler excluded). Now McGrattan knows exactly what his role would be. He also knows that the Bruins have gone out on a limb bringing him into camp. If you read the article he writes on NESN's front page, he really takes a tone of disappointment, he felt like he was going to get a deal, and was slighted that he sat there with no contract. This means two things. First, he is going to come in with a chip on his shoulder....   He is going to feel like he has a lot of people to prove wrong. Also, he is going to come with a short leash. If the Bruins sign him, he is going to know that he is going to be very expendable, and that without any production, he can spend a large amount of time in the press box. So basically, McGrattan is exactly what the team needs, for a bargain of a price, with a low risk contract....  Sounds like the same conversation we had about Miro the hero last season, and how did that one turn out in the end? Now, if we were to sign McGrattan for around 800k, we would be under the cap, regardless of what happens with Savard to start the year. Now assuming that Savard might spend some time to start the year on the shelf, opening night could look like this...

Lucic – Krejci – Horton
Recchi – Bergeron – Ryder
Caron – Seguin – Wheeler
Thornton – Campbell – Paille

Chara – Seidenberg
Boychuk – Stuart
Ference – Hunwick

Rask
Thomas

Scratch – McGrattan
IR – Savard, Sturm

Salary – $54.982 Million
Salary Cap – $59.4 Million

Assuming Jordan Caron has a good camp, a case could easily be made for him being a third line winger. This puts Blake Wheeler in the position of needing to prove himself. Wheeler would spend time on the third line as a scorer, but also as a big body to keep an eye on the other guys. Blake has needed to prove that he has the ability to play physical hockey for a couple of years now, and if he can't do so, maybe he spends some time in the press box, and McGrattan shifts up to the third line for awhile. Noone is going to take a run at Seguin or Caron if they know that McGrattan is right there ready to rearrange their grill. On the other hand, if the third line finds a flow, there can be a 3 man rotation for the wings on the fourth line. Campbell will be the center, and they can have a rotation of McGrattan, Thornton and Paille, depending on if they need muscle or tempo from the fourth line. The signing of Brian McGrattan will give this team much needed muscle, as well as more depth in the case of injuries, and more flexibility to play the style of hockey that benefits the team the most.

The B's have pulled of what looked like the unlikely, they resigned Stuie, 1 year deal for 1.675 million.

Now I'm sure Stuie wanted to re-up long term, and I'm sure the Bruins wanted to re-up him for a long time. Stuart is worth more than 1.7 million. What probably happened, is that the Bruins wanted to sign him long term, but didn't have the cap room this year to give him the money he deserved. So he will probably sign a longer extension, maybe even within the next couple of days. The B's are less cap strapped next year, especially if Chara takes a pay cut, like he is expected to, Bergey doesn't wind up taking up all of the cap room that Chara's deal leaves, and Ryder is gone, that will open things up a bit, and Stuart will get the money he actually deserves. Since this is a one year deal, Stuart is eligible to sign an extension at any time, and this could have just been a genius way for PC to get around a bit of a cap crunch this year. Could be a pretty genius move...

ESPN.com is reporting that PC stated that he and Chara's agent have had preliminary talks about extending his deal, and it goes on to quote PC in saying that both Z and Bergey WILL be extended.

I'm thinking that Chara could be extended at any point, as it is kind of obvious that Z will probably sign a contract to end his career in Boston. He will probably take a decent pay cut from his 7.5mil now, i would think probably towards the 5mil range. This brings in Bergerons deal. Bergey is making 5.75 this year, with a 4.75 cap hit. I seriously doubt that anything will happen with him until mid season at the earliest. Both he and the team will look to see whether or not last season is an anomoly, or if he is back to the form we thought he would be. Hopefully he returns to form, and we take the cap wiggle room we will get next year from Chara's pay cut, and Ryder's 4 million coming off the books, and we sign him to a huge long term deal. Either way, at some point during the season, I wouldn't be surprised to see Bergey locked up long term. If he stays as good as he was last year, look for something around 7 years 50 million, but if he regresses, think somewhere in the range of what his current contract is for an additional 3 years, give or take a year.

A sad day in the world of hockey today. Bob Probert passed away at the age of 45. Never a scorer, at all, but one of the best enforcers and protectors in the games history, back during a time when it took skill and guts in order to be an enforcer. He played in a way that we can all appreciate, and he will be sadly missed. Enjoy the best of Bob Probert series. RIP Bob

so thoughts on lines looking like this...

Horton - Savard - Lucic

Ryder - Bergeron - Satan/Wheeler

Recchi - Krejci - Seguin

Thornton - Sabotka - Campbell/Paille

Chara - Seidenberg

Stuart - Boychuk

Hunwick - Ference

Rask

Thomas

I know the d-pairs have been debated, but i think that would be a solid starting 6 with guys like alexandrov, mcquaid and wozneiwzawhatsit in the minors.

Capwise, that leaves them with a decent amount of room....  I added it up as if Stuart got the same money as Boychuk, and that Satan and Wheeler, and Campbell and Paille would make the same amount. what i got out of all those salaries was 56.504 million locked up against the cap with that being the starting line up. The cap is reportedly set at 59.4 million. That leaves us with about 2.8 million in cap room to work with, with a pretty damn good starting line up...

Thoughts??

I know I know.... I have never liked Dennis Wideman. He frusterated me more than any other Bruin I can remember. However, I have to say that I hope he moves on to a productive career in Florida.

Gee bomber, you talked all kinds of crap about this guy, and how you basically wanted his head on a platter....

yeah, yeah i did, i know. However, it was nothing personal against wideman, it was all frusteration...  He seemed like he was mostly trying with all he could, but he had mad confidence problems, and couldn't seem to do anything right over the last year in Boston.

This can happen with guys. They have a great season and show great potential in a tough hockey market, and the expectations rise, which causes a lot of guys to crack under the pressures (see, Lacher, Blaine; Raycroft, Andrew; Toivonen, Hannu; Samsonov, Sergei, etc. etc.)

That being said, look for Wides to have a pretty good year next year. He is going from a high pressure situation on a good team in boston, to a no pressure situation, in south florida. Look for wides to make a nice comeback next year

at least i hope so for him...

So its time for the annual BlueNGoldBomber bday, and here are my drunken wishes...

1. Dennis Wideman and Michael Ryder for Henrik Zetterberg

The salaries even out and we would be ditching 2 crappy contracts for a great foreward

2. Tim Thomas for Patrick Sharp and thomas kopechkny

Again, salaries even out, and we trade a backup goalie for 2 good forewards

3. hamill, marchand and 15 overall for number 1 overall

then we get hall and seguin... end of debate

4. blake wheeler for a used puck bag

god i hate him...

Mynhltraderumors.com is reporting that there is a lot of pressure on the Columbus front office to make the postseason next year, thus not affording them the time to draft a good defenseman. Thus, they are looking for NHL ready players in exchange for the 4th overall pick. Seems like the Blue jackets could use some goaltending help, as well as some good nhl ready young players. There is a lot of talk that toronto is going to be sending thoman kaberle to columbus for the fourth overall. That is a great deal for us. toronto gets worse, again, they trade an incredibly solid nhl defenseman, for a defensive prospect. That would make them a worse team next year, thus giving us a better first roud pick next year (come on sean couturier). However, I would rather see the B's reach out to the Blue Jackets to get one of the top defenseman.

So lets send this out to Columbus...   Tim Thomas, Blake Wheeler, and the 15th overall pick for the 4th overall pick.

This would make an incredible amount of sense for the Bruins. We're not going to resign Wheeler, yet he is still great trade bait. Timmys salary would come off the books, and combining that with the fact that the cap is looking like it's going to be increasing by 2 million next year. We could also buy out Ryder for another 2.5 million in savings. That would give up an extra 9.5 million in cap room. That would pretty much assure us the resigning of Seides, Boychuk, and Stuie, and lock down Patrice long term. It also gives us a great defensive prospect, probably Cam Fowler. If we wind up with Taylor Hall and Cam Fowler, there is already team chemistry there, two players that won two consecutive Memorial Cups together. Fowler could use a year in Providence, that would make him grow astronomically, maybe pair him together with Yuri Alexandrov, could be the top D pairing of the future. It also gives us insurance if Chara doesn't come back after next season.

Thus, if I am PC... I am running to find Scott Howson's number.

I know...  hear me out. I want to thank the thrill for being a whiney, selfish little thing, and forcing himself out of town, and into a terible situation in Toronto. Think about it this way, if Phil wouldn't have decided that he was an idiot, and never forced himself out of town, in the long run, we would be in a much worse situation. We might have had some goal scoring help this postseason, and may have gone a litle further, but lets be honest, it just wasn't our year. We were expecting nothing in the playoffs, and they overachieved by winning a series. Simple as that. But as we look foreward, our future looks to be the brightest in the NHL. With a plethera of young talent, with a few years of NHL experience under their belt, and some incredibly good draft picks from a bad Toronto team, were going pretty good, this year, they have a lot of options from the draft to set them up long term. If I were PC, I would obviously take either Seguin or Hall, whoever is available. Both can step in from day 1 and have a great impact on this team. Then, I would package our first round pick, as well as our second round pick, and possibly a fourth or fifth, to send to either
Columbus, Tampa or the Isles, to take either Cam Fowler, Erik Gudbranson, or Brandon Gormley. Any one of those 3 could fit into the top 7 defenseman for the B's next year, or could take a year in Providence to mature, depending on how the situation with Seides, Boychuk and Stuie work out. Also, a lot of times in these drafts, a guy who is projected to go in the late first round falls out for some reason, and falls into the second round. Riley Sheahan, Brock Nelson, Stanislav Galiev or Tyler Toffoli could fall into the second round, which would make any one of them a great value pick in the beginning of the second round. Then, say someone bites and trades for Timmy. We would love to ditch the salary of Ryder, Wideman and Timmy, but lets be honest, we probably won't be able to move Wideman, and someone might bite on Ryder, as he had a decent postseason, but his contract is up after next season, so he probably wouldn't be moved until mid season or the deadline. So say a team comes in and takes Timmy off our hands. That means next years opening night roster could potentially look like this...

Lucic - Savard - Satan

Recchi - Bergeron - Seguin/Hall

Sabotka - Krejci - Ryder

Begin - Paille - Thornton

Chara - Seidenberg

Boychuk - Stuart

Hunwick - Wideman

Tuukka Rask

Free Agent

(Ference, Sturm on IR)

(Bodnarchuk, Macquaid, Fowler/Gudbranson/Gormley, Second round foreward, Hamill, Caron, Marchand in Providence to be called up)

That is a much better team than they were this year. Satan is coming back into a good goal scorer. Bergeron is looking like he is over the concussion. Seguin and Hall are great players waiting to happen, and pairing Seidenberg with Chara makes for a formidible first D pairing. Also, you have Sturm and Ference on the IR, which provides for more depth. Plus, you will have a huge amount of depth in Providence, so if you have more troubles with injuries, you have quite a few guys who can step in and fill. Thus, the Bruins, with a successful draft night, can greatly improve their team. They can become a legitimate cup contender.

So thanks Phil. Thanks a bunch.

The Bruins have a lot of guys that are coming up on free agency this offseason. Guys like Boychuk, Stuart, Wheeler, Paille and Seidenberg are good players that will bring good numbers to the team, however, none of them are the most important free agent to be. The one guy that we need to sign more than the rest is easily Shawn Thornton. Thornton doesn't put up the best numbers, but he plays with more heart than any two other Bruins. When the Cooke situation happened, who was the guy to step up, Thornton. And when that game went down the tubes towards the end, who was the guy skating and playing harder than any other player out there... number 22. He is to this team what PJ stock was in the early 2000's, except we have a good chance to keep Thornts around for the long term. He only puts up a handfull of points, so his price should come cheaper than what he is worth. There is really no reason for the Bruins not to keep him around long term, and as soon as they lock it up, there should be an influx of number 22 jerseys purchased. I know I will be one of them.

ok, so a possible team for next year...

Patrick Sharp - Marc Savard - Milan Lucic

Marco Sturm - Patrice Bergeron - Mark Recchi

Taylor Hall/Tyler Seguin - David Krejci - Blake Wheeler

Vladamir Sobotka - Michael Ryder - Shawn Thornton

Zdeno Chara - Dennis Seidenberg

Mark Stuart - Johnny Boychuk

Matt Hunwick - Adam Macquaid

Tuukka Rask

Kevin Regan

Andrew Ference on IR (like usual)

That team would be under the cap even absorbing Ference's cap hit. If we could get a little lucky and trade thomas and wideman, that could be our team next year. what do you guys think?? I think its a pretty decent upgrade over this year...

Lets be honest, NBC is bad for hockey. The way they handle the sport is a travesty. Complete lack of promotion from a network whos ratings sit somewhere around the CW. I understand that ABC dropped the NHL during the lockout, but lets be honest, that was 6 years ago. ABC is clearly the best of the cable networks when it comes to sports coverage. They own all 27 ESPN networks, and ABC itself often shows high profile sports events to the masses. There is no better way to get a sport to the masses than ESPN. Look at what has happened to college football since they have gotten the attention of ABC. It is now the second biggest sport in the US behind the NFL. Thus, whenever the current deal with NBC expires, the NHL really needs to make a move to join back with ABC. NBC seems to have the NHL and the sport of hockey in like 8th place on its priority list. I remember a few years back when a game went into overtime and eventually a shootout, but NBC felt the need to cut the broadcast in order to show a horse racing pre race show. And tonights USA Canada game. It was on the extremely covered network of MSNBC, while NBC showed ice dancing. Really?? This sport is basically shoved aside by NBC. And the only partner of NBC that the NHL is shown on is versus. Who watches versus, lets be honest. If you strike a deal with ABC, you have the potential to show games on ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN classic, MTV and a bunch of other disney run networks.

All in all, thanks for being the only network to pick us up after the lockout, but it is time to move on to bigger and better things...

So the Ottawa Sun is reporting that the Bruins are shopping Tim Thomas -

"Boston has held talks with teams who are looking for goaltender. The 35 year old Tim Thomas has a no-movement clause, and has a $5 million cap hit until 2011-12. Chicago could be interested, but would have to bury Huet in the minors or find a trade partner for him. The Stars, Blues and Blue Jackets could be interested, though the price would be steep. Garrioch thinks they’d be able to get a top 6 forward, top 4 defenseman, and a backup goalie."

Chicago would definately be a trade partner. They need to rearrange a lot of salary before next year, and could use a superstar goalie for the playoffs. Blues and Jackets have a lot of offensive youth, so they could be good trade partners too. My question is, do we really want to trade Timmy?

The answer is, yes. The Bruins aren't going anywhere this year. They might make the playoffs, so they can be a quick sweep for Washington or Pittsburgh. Timmy isn't getting any younger. I would hate to see him go, as I love his personality and place on this team. However, how much could we use 5 million in cap space. Even if we dumped him for prospects, or if we got a quality scorer in return, his 5 mil in cap space is desperately needed on the offensive front. I feel like the teams mentioned above have enough to offer that this would be the best time to move on from Timmy. It should officially be Tuukka time.

Lets be honest, we need to deal Dennis Wideman. He is not contributing at the level that he should be, or that his supposed skill level would warrant. He is especially coming up short for how much he is getting paid. He is currently 10th on the team in scoring, 3rd amongst defenseman, but that isn't saying much, as he has only amassed totals of 3-11-14. When he was acquired from St. Louis, he was supposedly going to be a great puck moving defenseman, in the same mold of Brian Campbell. While he has shown some offensive potential, there is a huge problem...  He can't play defense. Watching Wideman trying to cover the defensive end is just plain brutal.

However, there is hope. While his salary is rather high, and he is locked up for another 3 years, I'm willing to bet there is a team out there who is willing to take him on, as he is young and could still grow. One team that is in an intriguing spot is Carolina. They obviously aren't going anywhere this year, and they are probably going to lose Joe Corvo. Half a year rental on Corvo to dump Wideman's salary and assuring that we can lock up Johnny Boychuk long term?? A lot of people would think that we wouldn't want to deal a guy like Wideman within the conference, but why not?? I would love to see Carolina become an even worse team defensively than they already are. How about Los Angelas and Randy Jones?? I mean sure, he might be killed by his hometown fans, but if he survives long enough to be a half year rental, and Wideman is on the west coast, I could see this being a great deal. We could possibly bring in a draft pick along with Jones.

However, even with Wideman sitting, this team has enough blue line depth to manage. What we need is goal scoring. Thus enters the Kovalchuk factor. If we were to throw Wideman, Hamill and our first round pick at Atlanta, why wouldn't they take that deal?? Hamill hasn't torn it up in the AHL, but in his preseason bouts with the big team, he has shown some potential. Atlanta has some good youth along the blue line, adding Wideman, a veteran who is still young, could be a good piece to their puzzle. Throw in our first round pick to boot, I feel like Atlanta would take this deal (I would trade Boston's first round pick instead of Toronto, as we will probably wind up with either Cam Fowler or Tyler Seguin, both great prospects, especially Seguin).

One other guy that kind of intrigues me, and could fit into the Bruins system and needs is Alex Tanguay. He is a veteran guy who has been considered to be done for a few years now. He is currently with Tampa and will more than likely be available come deadline time. Sound familiar?? Seems like the same script from the Mark Recchi deal. We probably wouldn't have to give up Wideman for Tanguay, and worst case, he would be watching the rest of the season from the press box if he doesn't pan out. I feel like this could be a good deal for the Bruins to look at.

Either way you slice it, I feel like the way this season is panning out, it's not the year. If we were to stay healthy throughout the second half of the season and through the playoffs, we could make a little run at it, but I'm not convinced we have enough to battle with the Devils, Caps, Pens, etc. Looking foreward however, if we could deal some excess bagage (cough wideman cough), we are still in great shape for the long term.

So me and my dad got into an interesting conversation a while back, and i figured i would pose it to you guys...   who is the most popular bruin of all time??

When you look at all of the guys who have put on a bruins uni over the history of the team, it is tough to pick one over the rest, however, i will narrow it down to just a few, and leave the option for other...

Bobby Orr - My vote goes to number 4. 264 goals, 624 assists, 888 points in a Bruins uniform... as a defenseman. One of the 3 best players in the history of hockey (I would say behind Howe and Gretzky). Brought the Bruins to new heights in the 70's. Was the back bone of the team throughout its most popular point in team history.

Terry O'reilly - 204-402-606 career totals. A lot of people overlooked O'reillys scoring ability because he was so known for his physical game. However, he put up very good numbers as a Bruin. And he was Boston. If you asked any Bruins fan in the 70's who they would be on the ice, it was O'reilly.

Johnny Bucyk - 545-794-1339 totals as a bruin. The chief did work. He remained as a Bruin forever it seemed. Set the club marks in points, which wasnt topped for about 20 years until ray bourque did it. still remains with the organization now as director of road services.

Cam Neely - 395-299-694 career totals. Was the prototypical Bruin. Was big, strong, physical, and could score. Would put the puck in the net then punch you in the face. What shows a spoked B like that. Even though his career was cut drastically short, he remains as a Bruin throughout, now working the front office.

Ray Bourque - What can you say about the Captain. 410-1169-1579 career totals. Holds the Bruins record for points. One of the classiest guys in Bruins history. When Espo's number was retired, you dont get any classier. And to speak to his popularity, he caused the entire city of Boston to be Avalanche fans when they won the cup. When a player causes fans to cheer for another team, thats popularity.

PJ Stock - Might be a dark horse here. Only played 2 and change seasons in boston, putting up 1-12-13 totals. However, go to a Bruins game and look aroud for a Stock jersey, I'm willing to bet youll see a few. A lot of true Bruins fans hold PJ very close to their heart. And look at the views of the fight between him and stephen peat on youtube.

PJ Axelsson - 103-184-287 career totals. heres another potential dark horse. didnt put up the best stats, only averaged a little over 9 goals a season, however, he always seemed to play his heart out, and Boston is a place that can truly appreciate that. Same deal as stock, go to a B's game and try to not see an Axelsson jersey. Guaranteed you will

Milt Schmidt - 229-346-575 career totals. However, his life as a Bruin goes way past his time on the ice. he has been a part of the Bruins organization for 75 years now. He is the definition of Bruin for life.

Those are the guys that stand out the most to me...  If there is anyone I have missed, comment and make a case for them. I will make a poll for this topic, vote away. And follow me on Twitter.com/bluengoldbomber

Not to sound Cliche... but that truly was a classic. The Bruins came out pretty well, up until Thornton got trounced. That seemed to set them back for the next 2 periods. They seemed to find their stride right after the Fenway fathful performed a rousing rendition of Sweet Caroline.

Now as much as Neil Diamond has an effect on people, I'm not suggesting that he was the reason for the outcome of this game. However, that definately got the crowd back into it. From that point until the first as scored, the Bruins fans seemed to wake up from the slumber that the Bruins put them in for the first two and a half periods. When the first goal was scored, Fenway truly exploded. Moment of pure joy. It also put a damper on the Philly faithful. Philly fans are obnoxious, as they had been all game. However, their expression changed drastically after the first goal was scored.

When the Flyers had about 6 chances in a second and a half in OT, but failed to score the putaway goal, it became clearly evident that this was the Bruins day. When Bergeron set up Sturm right in front and the puck found the back of the net, it was the most deafening sound these ears have ever heard.

This game was storybook to say the least. It is also something that could be a catalyst for a big second half of the season. Watching the team after the OT goal, they seemed like they came together that much more. This will be a big drawing point of energy for the rest of the season. Combine that with the playoff experience they now have, and they could definately be a surprise throughout the playoffs. The B's have seen the playoffs from the bottom and top of the standings, so they definately have more awareness of what to expect in the postseason. Their chances for the rest of the year are looking very well. Could be a great first half of 2010 for the B's.

Then, looking to the offseason, it's going to be a dicey one. Patrice Bergeron is a UFA after next season. Locking him up long term will be the number one priority in this upcoming offseason. Bergeron in my opinion is one of the best young players in the NHL. Yes, he is still a young player. He is only 24, younger than Johnny Boychuk. He is in his 7th Professional season, so he seems much older, but he is a great young veteran. Hands down choice for next Bruins captain. Look for him to get a 10 or so year deal worth similar money to Savard.

The Bruins will have 47.071 million dollars locked up next year. The salary cap barely raised this year, so lets just say that is raises a big this coming offseason, say to 58 million. That leaves the Bruins with about 11 million in cap room. Players coming off the payroll include Blake Wheeler, Dan Paille, Mark Recchi, Steve Begin, Vladimir Sabotka, Shawn Thornton, Derek Morris, Andrew Ference, Mark Stuart, Johnny Boychuk, Adam Mcquaid and Andy Wozniewski. A few of these guys are more than likely gone. I would say Morris and Ference are probably gone. I wouldn't be surprised to see Begin walk. 12 points in 40 games for almost a million, not so much. He has an A on his chest, and definately not for his on ice work, so he could possibly be brought back for his off ice intangibles, but I'm not completely convinced.

As for the other FA's, it is going to get dicey. Wheeler could command a bit of a price tag. I would say if we could sign him for 2-3 million, lock him up, if not, he might be walking. Paille has been a huge surprise for the B's. He won't command much of a price tag, so I see him in a Bruins jersey for a long time to come. I feel like when we look back in 10 years, he is the next PJ. I have a feeling this isn't Recchi's last season. He will probably be back next year. He is the Bruins third leading scorer this year, but he is still old, so he will probably be back for the same amount as he made last year. Thornton and Sabotka will also sign for about the same. Boychuk could probably be signed for a million and a half or so. Stuart for about 2. Let's assume these moves are made. Wheeler for 3 Million, Paille for 1.5, Recchi for 1, Sabotka and Thornton for 1, Boychuk for 1.5 and Stuart for 2. That leaves us with 58 million locked up, right under the salary cap, and the opening night roster as follows :

Mark Savard, Patrice Bergeron, Michael Ryder, David Krejci, Marco Sturm, Blake Wheeler, Danny Paille, Mark Recchi, Milan Lucic, Zach Hamill, Vladamir Sabotka, Shawn Thornton, Byron Bitz, Zdeno Chara, Dennis Wideman, Mark Stuart, Matt Hunwick, Johnny Boychuk and probably another rookie defenseman, with Tim Thomas and Tuukka Rask minding the net.

The Bruins will be fairly cash strapped, especially if they resign Wheeler. If they let Wheeler walk, they could make a run at Coburn, Corvo or Colaiacovo.

It is going to be a dicey offseason, it should be interesting to see what the Bruins do.

The B's have really started to come together along the point. Like the rest of the team, they struggled at the beginning of the season, but they are looking good now. However, of our starting 6, three of them at UFA's after this season.

After the 09-10 campaign, Derek Morris, Andrew Ference and Mark Stuart will be free to walk. I have a feeling Morris will be gone. He puts up great point totals from the D position, which could lead the Bruins to resign him, but his cap hit will be upwards of 4 Mil a year, which the B's won't be willing to swallow. Which leaves the debate between Ference and Stuart.

Ference is a good Defenceman. He has put up decent points during parts of his career, but he hasn't shown the same totals in Boston. 'Fragile' Ference has had a tough time staying healthy too. In a way, we can thank him for this, because it has given some of the younger D men some experience, but 1.4 Million is an expensive price to pay for his production.

Stuart will be the one to get a new contract. His point production has been gradually increasing throughout his career. He had a career high 17 points last year. He is off to a slower pace this year, but still has more point production than that of Ference. He is also only 25 compared to Ference's 30. He still has time to grow as a defencemen, but should still have a small cap hit, around where he is now (1.3 Mil). Thus, Stuart will remain in black and gold.

Looking at the crop of upcoming UFA's, there are a lot of Defenceman on the market for around 2-2.5 Mil. Joe Corvo will come at a little higher than 2.5, and its entirely possible he has already resigned, but if not, he could make a great fit for the B's. If not, look out for Carlo Colaiacovo. Braydon Coburn is a RFA, but we have the picks to compensate.

Anyone of those signings would leave us with a great starting 6 for the immediate future. Along the point, we would look something like this :

Chara (32 y/o) - Wideman (26 y/o)

Hunwick (24 y/o) - (Corvo Colaiacovo or Coburn, 33 25 and 27 y/o respectively)

Stuart (25 y/o) - Boychuk (25 y/o)

Thats a good, young 6 along the blue line, and it is very affordable. It will leave the B's with some wiggle room along the cap, as they will have about 13 mil a year to play with after this season. Thus, as usual, the B's blue line looks good for the immediate future.

The Bruins do it again. looking back a year ago at the contract situations of this team, it was hard to imagine them keeping any of their good star talent. however, somehow, they have kept the most important pieces in place. except for some overrated douchebag thats currently staying in toronto, the bruins have done a great job of keeping together the core that makes them a good team.

The Savvy deal is an awesome deal for both sides...

Why this deal works for Savvy...   The Bruins signed a 31 year old center to a 7 year extension. this deal will keep savvy in a spoked B until he is 40. That is probably the rest of his career. It is no lie that savard has developed into a premier player since being with the bruins. when he came here, there were a lot of doubts about his game, whether he could play both ends of the ice. etc. however, since his time in boston, he has developed into a great overall player. He has obviously found a home in boston, he seems to love it here, so it must be a great feeling for savvy that he will be a bruin for as long as he can play the game.

Why this deal works for the B's...   The bruins have just signed one of their top 3 best talents for a 4 million dollar a year cap hit. heres a list of players that will have a higher cap hit than savvy with nowhere near the talent...

Ron Hainsey, Nik Antropov, Tim Connoly, Daymond Langkow, Robyn Regehr, John-Michael Liles, Mike Ribeiro (I dont care what anyone says, he sucks), Tom Gilbert (same cap hit), Michael Handzus (same cap hit), Pierre Marc Bouchard (same cap hit), JP Dumont (same cap hit), Shane Doan, Ryan Malone, Andrej Meszaros (same cap hit)

All of these guys are hurting their teams caps more than savvy, and find me one you would have on your team over savvy. Thus, the cap strapped bruins still have some wiggle room to sign some of the upcoming free agents (about 13 million next year to sign Wheeler, Begin, Paille, Sabotka, Thornton, Morris, Ference, Boychuk, Stuart, Lefebvre, Lehtonnen).  This means Wheeler could get a deal at the right price, Paille probably wont demand a lot of money, so he could be back, Begin for the right price, probably Sabotka, probably Thornton. Morris and Stuart are probably gone. I hope Ference will be back, and who knows what they do with Lefebvre and Lehtonnen.

So Savvy is staying for as long as he can play hockey, and we have the wiggle room to sign back a few more key guys. Buy giving a guy a deal through 40 sounds like a bad idea, right??   Wrong. The last 2 years of Savvys contract are between 500k and 600k a year. Thus, if he hits 38 and his play experiences a big drop, he can be bought out fairly easily. Opens up a roster spot, and who knows what the financial landscape of the league will be by then.

Long story short, this is an incredible deal for both sides. Savvy gets the security that he has worked so hard for, and the Bruins get a guy that is one of their few best players for much cheaper than any of us expected.

Since I had to work on thanksgiving, I am a little late getting to what I am thankful for. However, there is a simple answer as to what a Bruins fan has to be thankful for this season. There are a lot of things that we have going for us now. We have a team that is starting to click again this season. A team that returns to the personality that makes New England a hockey territory above all else. Players that we can't help but love. A great coach. Great youth. etc. etc.

However, there is one thing that I am most thankful for, above all else because of its uniqueness. This team will probably be together next year (you can never rule anything out with Jeremy Jacobs), so we have them to be mystified with for a little longer. However, on New Years day, we truly have something that will probably never happen again. The winter classic is something that will truly appeal to any Boston sports fan's heart.

Lets be honest, New Englanders are more passionate about sports than any other area in the country. New Yorkers will say they are, but their not real people. So when you look at Bostonians passion about their teams, the Red Sox are probably the most loved. Find me a team that can put their city through more shit, and still be loved better than the sox. This is a team that didn't win for 86 years, yet no one seemed to give up on them.

Then you take the Bruins, a team which is a carbon copy of the city in which they play. Blue collar, hard working kids. That has lead to the relatability of this team throughout the years. From the 30's - the 90's, there was no passion above the bruins fans. they drew to this team like a moth to a bug light. The fans felt like they were one of the guys around this team. So for 60 years, hockey was bigger in Boston than anywhere else in the country (possibly excluding Minnesota). Then the team didn't exist from the late 90's to about 2007 (i refuse to acknowledge that the team even played any games during this time, I still claim they folded for about a decade). Then came a wave of young guys that reinvented the team. In the mold of the past teams that endeared this team, Boston became a hockey town again.

Then comes New Years day. The perfect day for any new england sports fan. While it is true that the razor in foxboro would have better logistics for a hockey game, it would not have the same magic. That is what the winter classic is all about. It is a spectacle, a once a year venture into all of our souls as a 12 year old kid. When we would skate on the pond and pretend it was game 7 in the stanley cup finals. This game will serve as a sports mecca for thousands of people who have invested a significant portion of our lives into both of these franchises, and to see the two come together in sub zero temperature, there is going to be nothing but magic in the air.

I have tickets to the game, about 15 rows behind the pesky pole. I don't think I have ever looked foreward to something more in my life. It will be my first time in Fenway park, and I can not think of a better time to spend there than watching the B's. I have a few friends that went to the game 2 years ago in Buffalo, who are die hard sabres and bills fans, and they echoed every sentiment that I have for this years classic. I can't wait!

There has been a lot of panic this season as to where the "disappointing" Bruins are going. There has been a lot of talk about trades, free agents, etc. Well here is my drunken rant about why people should basically chill out....

The Bruins this year have been hit with the injury bug just as hard as any team in the NHL. David 'bacon' Krejci got hit with swine flu., Looch and Savvy with month or so injuries, 3 big players out long term... this combined with the normal wear and tear of the brutal game we love called hockey, and that is a big hurdle for the B's to overcome...

There has been a lot of talk about free agents being brought in, namely Peter Forsberg. This is one of the point of the season that I have been disappointed with so far. Forsberg has shown signs of the player he used to be with Colorado, which means that he would bring immediate production to this team. He would also bring a lot of intangibles to a young Bruins squad. He has been in the league for seemingly 207 years (Lindros??? That was an even deal). That kind of experience could do incredible things for the plethera of youth that Boston has. Namely, I could see Forsberg quickly taking David 'bacon' Krejci under his wing and teaching him more in a season than he has learned in the rest of his hockey career. Forsberg would have been a great addition to this Bruins team who's verteran presence consists of Michael 'slow' Ryder, Mark 'Steve Nash of the NHL' Savard, and Zdeno 'I'm too tall to taste this chicken' Chara, a combined total of 33 years of NHL experience (aka almost chris chelios). That would make forsbergs presence on the team that much more valuable, also with stanley cup experience.

Then there has been talk of trades. Namely, Ilya Kovalchuk. I have hugely mixed feelings about this deal.... Kovalchuk is one of the premier players in the NHL, lets not lie to ourselves. He is exactly what the Bruins could use, especially the way they have played this year. He would bring excitement, tempo, and scoring to a team that has lacked all 3. This is where the mixed feelings come into this deal. I feel like this deal would be great for the team this year. It would make for a deeper playoff run, more scoring, etc. etc. Also, combine that with the experience that Kovalchuk has with Savvy. These two already have an intro to each other on the ice. Think about a Kovalchuk-Savard-Lucic line. Come on now. However, what would Kovalchuk's staying power in Boston be?? He would obviously come with a large cap hit. How would that play into the clubs future?? What would this mean for some of the younger players that havent been locked down long term yet. Also, it seems as if Atlanta would be demanding quite a premium for Kovalchuk, especially given their recent success, and possibility to make the playoffs this year. Meaning that Boston would have to give up a Zach Hammil, Boychuk, Marchand, Lehtonnen or Bitzy. In order to get Kovalchuk, we would probably have to give up at least one of these guys, if not multiple, as well as picks, and other lesser prospects. Basically, not at all worth it for a rental player that we wont sign past this year. I would love to see Ilya in a spoked B this year, but not for the price it is gonna demand. If it was a deal that just demanded Draft picks, ok, but not for the plethera of young talent Atlanta is going to demand.

Here is the bright spot to all of this... The team this year isn't that far behind where they were last year... last year on November 22, the team was 14-4-4. 32 points on November 22. This year on November 22, 10-8-4, for 24 points. Last year on November, the team went 11-1 in November, on a wicked hot streak. Looking at this year, The Bruins have had a decent November, starting off a road trip right with wins over Atlanta (a probably western conference playoff team) and Buffalo (an always dangerous team with ridiculously ugly jerseys). So for a team to only be 8 points behind where they were last year, when their team won the eastern conference, I feel like things could quite possibly work out for the best.