Who is the ideal candidate for Don Sweeney? We know that the Bruins need more cap space in order to sign Pavel Zacha, Patrice Bergeron, and maybe even David Krejci. Boston has Craig Smith and Mike Reilly, who are two players that could be on the shopping block.
Let's start with Smith, who was acquired by Boston through free agency. He signed a three-year contract, worth an AAV of $3.1M. The Wisconsin native is set to become an unrestricted free agent after the conclusion of the 2022-23 season. What makes Smith the perfect player to move?
First off, Smith has a respectable trading value. The Bruins won't be dealing Nick Foligno, let's face it. A seasoned vet, Foligno, has proven to be a signing flop. Boston would have to deal a high-end prospect or high-end draft picks in order to trade Foligno's salary. For example, a first-round pick. Boston would get future assets if Smith were to be traded. Furthermore, retaining draft picks for future use.
Smith is another guy that regressed last season. The right winger started the past season on the second line, before being demoted to the third line. Smith was very streaky last season, scoring just 36 points in 74 games. He was pretty much unnoticeable throughout the postseason. He failed to score a point in seven games. Furthermore, a player like Pavel Zacha could fit nicely into Smith's role. Zacha is an offensive player. He will likely see time on the second-unit power play and on the second or third line.
Lines:
1: DeBrusk-Bergeron-Marchand
2: Hall-Krejci-Pastrnak
3: Zacha-Coyle-Frederic
4: Foligno-Nosek-Steen/McLaughlin
PP1: Bergeron-Marchand-Pastrnak-McAvoy-Krejci
PP2: Hall-Coyle-Zacha-DeBrusk-Lindholm
Marchand Out:
1A: Hall-Krejci-Pastrnak
1B: DeBrusk-Bergeron-Zacha
3: Foligno-Coyle-Frederic
4: Steen-Nosek-McLaughlin
PP1: Bergeron-Hall-Pastrnak-Krejci-McAvoy
PP2: Coyle-Zacha-DeBrusk-Grzelcyk-Lindholm
Do the Bruins have another player that they can move that has a similar contract to Smith? Yes. The Bruins do have Mike Reilly, who is in his second year of a three-year contract, worth an AAV of $3M. Is Reilly the perfect player to trade once Charlie McAvoy returns? Boston will be without Charlie McAvoy until early December after the star underwent shoulder surgery this offseason.
If Boston does not see Reilly making their roster, they could straight out ship him out of town prior to the season. Reilly will battle Derek Forbort, Connor Clifton, and Jakub Zboril for a bottom pairing role.
Another option for the Bruins would be to place McAvoy on long-term-injury-reserve, thus freeing up his $9.5M contract. Boston would then have enough money to sign Zacha, Bergeron, and Krejci to respectable contracts. Once McAvoy is ready to return to the lineup, they could trade Reilly's $3M AAV. Would Boston still be under the cap limit? Most likely, yes. Although this seems like the ideal scenario, we need to remember that Don Sweeney needs to have a deal in place. Will teams know our situation and demand more? Sweeney may have a hard time negotiating a deal, as other teams will have more leverage.
D-Pairs:
Lindholm-McAvoy
Grzelcyk-Carlo
Forbort-Clifton/Reilly/Zboril
Without McAvoy:
Lindholm-Carlo
Grzelcyk-Reilly/Clifton/Zboril
Forbort-Clifton/Reilly/Zboril
Boston GM Don Sweeney will be on high alert as he tries to create a Stanley Cup-winning team.