by Eric Ahearn
If I had to give the Bruins an overall grade I would give them a solid B. Granted, if they traded for Rick Nash while giving up top prospect Dougie Hamilton and Tuukka Rask, I would have given them an F. I stick by my original thoughts in that I only wanted the Bruins to make minor moves to secure depth. I wanted players such as Selanne and Whitney, but they stayed put because of their team’s recent success.
Another player I wanted the Bruins to make a run at was David Jones from Colorado. Though I am disheartened to not obtain him, he didn’t move at all, which definitely came as a surprise to me. Of the fifteen forwards currently on the Avalanche’s roster, only three are signed for next year. I cannot believe Colorado didn’t move some of their guys. This leads me to believe that the prices they put on their players was just too high for other GM’s. If David Jones moved to another team for a pick and a player in return, then I might have been upset at the Bruins, but the fact being, no team could pry him from the Ave’s, even though he is far from an elite player. Consider me perplexed.
Despite the terrible market for buyers during the trade deadline, the Bruins did make some moves. Let’s break down the trades that did happen for the Bruins.
Kampfer (D) to the Minnesota Wild for Zanon (D): This is a typical trade I would expect out of Chiarelli. In trading a prospect that has not held the eye of your head coach, Claude Julien got a role player to help out in the stretch run. On the Bruins he will be a third pair defensemen who is comparable to Adam McQuaid. He will take the body, block shots, offer limited offensive impact, but won’t drop the gloves. Zanon is capable of playing 20+ minutes a night and adds great depth, giving the Bruins a solid 1-7 defensive unit. Zanon is in the last year of his contract and is strictly a rental. Though I liked this trade, it will not “wow” many fans.
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| Rolston makes his return as a Bruin |
B’s prospects Riendeau (F) and Cantin (D) to the NY Islanders for Rolston (F) and Mottau (D): The Bruins trade a 23-year-old forward in Riendeau and a 21-year-old defenseman in Cantin for two older vets. Neither of the prospects have been labeled “top-end” and I am sure Chiarelli won’t lose too much sleep over losing these guys. Rolston (39) and Mottau (33) have followed each other around, both playing for the Devils before playing this season on Long Island, yet neither one will have an over powering impact on the team, but will be role players. Rolston will fill in on the third line, and while his legs are not what they used to be in his first stint with the Bruins years ago, he still has a decent wrist/slap shot. If he earns Julien’s trust, he may be able to help out on the penalty kill as well as the power play unit. Mottau will be slotted as the Bruins’ 8th defensemen. And if Boychuk misses significant time due to a concussion, he will be bumped to the 7th spot. Both added players are rentals for this year.
Quick Hits:
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| The Canucks traded a promising center in Cody Hodgson. |
- Vancouver: Did the rioters take over the GM’s phone? The Canucks trade the young, talented, rookie of the year, and Calder Trophy candidate Cody Hodgson for Zach Kassian. What the Hell?? Bruins fans should be smirking because many feel Vancouver did this to try and counter a player like Milan Lucic. While Kassian is supposed to be an up and coming power forward, he won’t be a Lucic and his long term outlook will most likely never compare to Hodgson. Awful trade for Vancouver…great one for Buffalo.
- Tampa Bay continued to stockpile picks, and have increased their future outlook. I really like what they are doing down in Florida.
- Colorado Avalanche should have done a lot more, as mentioned above.
- Nashville continues to make a push for this year and prove that they are committed to winning. They reunite the Kostitsyn brothers by getting Andrei from those Canadian Frogs in Montreal. They overpaid for Paul Gaustad out of Buffalo, but Gaustad is a premier faceoff man who will help out Nashville’s third line. I think they are making these moves to give a reason for players like Weber and Suter to stay. I have a feeling Nashville will pick up a lot of fans in the post-season. For some reason, I am already rooting for them.
- Johnny Oduya was a player that I half-expected the Bruins to bring in. But Chicago won the sweepstakes as they offered up a 2nd and 3rd round pick. I am pumped the Bruins did not offer a deal that big for a rental. Plus, Oduya would have been a 5th defensemen for us.
- Though Buffalo brought in Hodgson and got a 1st round pick for Gaustad, I refrain from calling them winners at the deadline. They had the opportunity to unload some of the awful contracts they are tied down by and failed to. I would still give them a solid B much like the Bruins
For all the fans out there that are upset that their teams didn’t make any improvements, don’t worry. They were smart. The prices for a lot of players were just outrageously high this year. My guess is that teams that did not make major moves did not want to give up on their future.
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Please explain me your rating, Bruins get a 5-6th and a 7-8th D and old 3rd line at best foward and you give them a solid B? On the other hand I like what Zanon bring to the team, just the type of guy made for the Series.
ReplyDeleteI know you hate the Canucks, but I disagree with you on Hodgson-Kassian... as good as he his, Hodgson will be just an other smurf with offensive skills on a team of smurf with offensive skills (Gaustad less)! I see them as the new Canadian Frogs of 2011... the Habs had since change their strategy!
Alex
A Canadian Frogs Fan
sorry for such a delay in my response...I did not notice your comment. The reason why I gave the Bruins a solid B is because they did not deviate from their long term plans. They would of had to given up way too much to add a more notable piece. For instance, Gaustad costing a 1st round pick.
DeleteI have begun to notice that I do not hate the Canucks...rather just some of their players and their coach. The Canucks will come out and hit at times which I am a huge fan. They stood up to the Bruins a lot of the time in Vancouver during the Cup Series. I am a big fan of players like Bieska and Kesler...but for vets like the Sisters to not even defend themselves against a tiny Marchand is tough to watch. I like the back up tender the Canucks have too. You obviously have to keep talents like the Sisters but a new coach, waiving Lapiere, and trading Luongo are the only things I would like to see done in that organization.