Nov 14, 2014; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Arizona Coyotes forward
Antoine Vermette(50) waits for the play to begin against the Vancouver Canucks before the start of the first period at Rogers Arena. The Arizona Coyotes won 5-0. Mandatory Credit: Anne-Marie Sorvin-USA TODAY Sports
“I think Boston is really trying hard to do something. Like, there was a rumor going around last night they were really trying to close a deal with Vermette. Some people I know who were at the world junior game from NHL teams had heard that. I don’t know if it’s going to happen or not, but that rumor was going around last night.”-Elliotte Friedman
The Boston Bruins are the most desperate team in the National Hockey League. They are desperate to win, desperate to make some moves and desperate for answers. It has been no secret that the Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli has been working to make some sort of plausible deal happen to kick start the Bruins squad and get them headed in the right direction as we get closer and closer to the playoff stretch.
“I think Boston is really trying hard to do something,” Elliotte Friedman said. “Like, there was a rumor going around last night they were really trying to close a deal with Vermette. Some people I know who were at the world junior game from NHL teams had heard that. I don’t know if it’s going to happen or not, but that rumor was going around last night.”
Rumor has it that Antoine Vermette is the most likely player to end up in Boston by the March deadline. Vermette,32, has 10 goals and 15 assists for a total of 25 points through 38 games this season. He is deemed a responsible two-way forward who is practiced at taking faceoffs. According to Rotoworld, he has a cap hit of $3.75 million. Currently, the Bruins only have $1.775 million available, so a deal is going to have to be made in order to consider Vermette a possibility.
Da Windy City
Naturally there has been some speculation on who the Bruins should get rid of, the primary focus lying on Bruins forward Milan Lucic. At $6 million per contract year, tallying just 6 goals and 12 assists and 69 PIM doesn’t make him worthwhile. As Freidman stated on the subject;
“I think the question with Lucic is he’s not a $6 million player right now, but he can be one. He is a guy who emotionally controls a team,” Friedman said. “When Boston was at its best, Lucic was very much their emotional core. He can play a major role. I think the question is – there’s two questions. No. 1, is something wrong with his body that it’s finally breaking down because of the role he’s played? No. 2, are they trying to get him to play whistle-to-whistle and he’s simply lost his effectiveness.”
Should the Bruins opt to move a guy like Milan Lucic, you’re talking a whole new team outlook that would require some serious re-branding as dealing Lucic away would take away the ‘brutality’ aspect of the game the Bruins are desperately trying to hold onto. You’re also talking about getting rid of an emotional core of the team, which may not be entirely horrible. Lets face reality and look at the facts, the Bruins have tried since 2011 to keep the Stanley Cup winning team ‘core’ together and implement the same type of caliber plays and players alike. With a League that is constantly changing and up-and-coming players with different talent levels, the Bruins have to adapt and change with the game instead of staying stuck in their ways, something they are learning the hard way this season. It’s time they stop looking to re-make the past and focus on changing their future for the better before it becomes too late.
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Loui Eriksson is also a possibility that the Bruins can look at. Since joining the team in July of 2013, he has missed the majority of a season battling with concussions and concussion-like symptoms. He has proved he is more of a play-maker, more apt to make a pass than take a shot and he’s seemingly unstable as far as scoring goes. Like any player Eriksson has ups and downs, but Eriksson’s scoring numbers have steadily decreased since 2008-2009 while he was with the Dallas Stars. When Freidman was asked about this possiblity he simply said:
“I wouldn’t say Eriksson is unavailable. I do think that St. Louis and Boston talked about the possibility of an Eriksson for Oshie deal. The one thing about Eriksson is that he’s only got one year left, and guys do not want to add term. He’s a short-term guy. Armstrong drafted Eriksson. I could see him thinking about the possibility, potentially, of trying it because he knows him and he’s only got one year left on term, but obviously that deal didn’t get done and I’m not sure it’s still even on the table.”
What are your thoughts, do you think the Bruins should spring for Vermette and if so, should it be Lucic that’s dealt away or someone else?