Boston Bruins: The aftermath of the Johnny Boychuk trade.

May 1, 2014; Boston, MA, USA; Boston Bruins left wing

(63) celebrates with defenseman

(55) after he scored a goal to tie the game during the third period against the Montreal Canadiens in game one of the second round of the 2014 Stanley Cup Playoffs at TD Banknorth Garden. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports

“Arguably this doesn’t make us better now, obviously, but it’s something that — when I look at it in a series of steps — it’s the right move.”- Peter Chiarelli on the Johnny Boychuk trade

Yesterday, Bruins Nation stopped for a moment, when the Boston Bruins announced that they had traded veteran defenseman Johnny Boychuk to the New York Islanders.  His departure resonates within the Bruins community. The team was visibly affected by the loss. The coaches understood the necessity of the trade but were upset.  The reaction of the fan base vacillated between cold rage and depression. It was a very ugly day in Boston, and the shootout loss to the Detroit Red Wings didn’t help the mood.

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Some kind of trade was necessary. The Bruins have committed fifty four million dollars to eleven players next season. There are fifteen UFA/RFA who will be needing a contract at the end of the year. Next year’s cap hell will make this year’s look like a walk in the Garden of Eden. There was no way the Bruins could afford to keep a player like Johnny Boychuk after all those choices.

Mistakes were made that could have prevented this disaster. A few contracts may have been too generous. The Bruins also had an opportunity to alleviate some of their problems by using at least one of their compliance buy-outs, but chose not to. The Boychuk trade could have been prevented if the organization was more willing to move a player like Chris Kelly, whose contract is very close to Boychuk’s cap wise.

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Peter Chiarelli may have just derailed the Bruins Cup chances this season. Without Johnny Boychuk, someone has to step up to be the new number three/number four for Boston. So, the Bruins have bet the farm on the assumption that Matt Bartkowski can successfully slide into Boychuk’s slot. While Bartkowski has gotten better, he’s not ready to put in the twenty to twenty-five minutes of near errorless hockey. (He screened a shot from Tuukka Rask in last night’s loss.) Torey Krug, Kevan Miller, and Adam McQuaid will certainly need to be ready to soak up extra minutes to counter Boychuk’s loss.

While the short term loss will be felt all season, the Bruins do have an opportunity to turn this toward their advantage in the next few years. A second-round pick from a team like the Buffalo Sabres and the New York Islanders will be a lot closer to a first round pick. (Especially from the Sabres. No offense.) The organization is already trying to counteract mistakes made by being ready for the future. It’s just a shame we lost ‘Johnny Rocket’ in the process.