A lot of Bruins fans were irate over the Milan Lucic trade. Once everyone calmed down, a lot of people saw what was going on in Boston and it started to make sense. The LA Kings paid through the nose for a one year deal with Lucic. If Lucic has a great year, it’s entirely possible to see ‘Looch the Gooch’ back in the Black and Gold.
What made very little sense this draft weekend was what was done with Dougie Hamilton. The Boston Bruins were looking for a young team that was developing and ready to go. The Bruins as early as a few weeks back were calling Hamilton a long-term player for Boston. Then all of a sudden, things started shifting. The Bruins opinion of Hamilton soured faster than milk left out in the summer sun.
More from Bruins News
- Bruins release Prospects Challenge roster, schedule Tuesday
- Bruins bringing back familiar forward on tryout contract
- The Bruins should take a look at these four free agents
- NHL Network lists Ullmark as sixth-best goalie in the league
- The Lasting Legacy of David Krejci
Why did the Bruins and Hamilton suddenly fall out of affection? Dougie’s next contract.
Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet revealed the biggest reason of the breach. The two teams weren’t even close on how much the 22-year old blueliner should be making.
“One GM compared it to “Harry Sinden running the team again.” What he meant was Hamilton and Milan Lucic made contract asks the Bruins didn’t like, and rather than doing much negotiating, pulled the trigger. To be fair, Don Sweeney was up against a July 1 offer sheet possibility, although not with Lucic.
“The best information I can give you is it appears the team offered six years and $33M to Hamilton, while the response was about $2M per year higher. Sometimes, we get caught up in initial proposals. Any good negotiator will tell you to exaggerate your opening position.”
Hamilton’s agent seemed to have the better of the Bruins front office. Hamilton was an integral part of their long-term plans, and Dougie knew it. So his agent applied pressure, and it all sort of backfired.
The Bruins couldn’t afford the extra two million a year. Not without a total reshuffle of the team (which happened anyway). When negotiations broke down, Sweeney made the command decision and moved the young blueliner.
Puck Prose
Now that Dougie Hamilton has been traded to the Flames, Dougie Hamilton is not getting flamed by the Boston media. (Tyler Seguin Round 2.) Now reports are coming out of the woodwork about his character. Hamilton was a snob who didn’t like his teammates and they didn’t like him.
From Stephen Harris of the Boston Herald:
It was surprising,” said one ‘NHL assistant GM’. “It’s obvious there’s something going on that we don’t know about. From what I’ve heard behind the scenes, his teammates don’t like him. I heard he’s a loner and sort of an uppity kid, and that his teammates don’t like him and it was unanimous.”
I met Dougie Hamilton a few times in the last two years. Whether I was a fan or a member of the press, he was always polite. Not that ‘I’ve got to be here, so I’ll put on that empty smile’ polite. He was genuinely surprised how much the fans like him, and he always seemed a little uncomfortable with the sex-symbol status he suddenly acquired in Boston. Trust me, there have been Bruins who I have met over the years and walked away feeling like I needed a shower. I never once got that vibe from him.
It’s unfortunate that members of the press have started circulating this information to drag Hamilton down. Maybe it’s to help the Bruins front office deflect the overwhelming level of distaste the fan base has about this weekend’s draft and trades. Maybe they want to increase their circulation. It’s just a bit too much right now.
More from Causeway Crowd
- Harrison, Toporowski shine in Prospects Challenge
- Obscure former Boston Bruins: Steven Kampfer
- Bruins release Prospects Challenge roster, schedule Tuesday
- Bruins release full “Historic 100” list ahead of season
- McAvoy, Lucic named to “Historic 100” list over the weekend