Boston Bruins Searching For A Sniper And Top-Four Defenseman.
Offensive Need: Sniper
Patrick Sharp’s name has been floating around in NHL trade rumors, such as from Bleacher Report. Initial reports have yet to include the Bruins in the list of possible landing locations for Sharp. The Canadians have stressed interest in the winger for his speedy skates and for his nifty shot.
Sharp scored a total of 21 goals last season, with 16 in the regular season and 5 in the playoffs which ended with a Stanley Cup. Last season was indeed a down year for Sharp, who finished the 2013-14 campaign with 34 goals. His contract is not up until the 2017-18 season in Chicago, but the team is up against the cap and cannot afford his $5.9 million annual value.
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Boston needs a pure goal scorer. Brett Connolly was acquired for his quick shot, something Sweeney’s predecessor believed. Yet Connolly is can not be Boston’s lone “sniper”. They’ll need more. They need at least one other true goal scorer to help this offense contend. The conundrum that was last week proved that Boston was at least willing to make big moves in order to bring in hefty returns. Now they need to make a deal to provide raw goal scoring ability and make this offense more legitimate.
Sweeney and the Bruins are in position to afford Sharp’s contract. With less than $9 million in cap space, though, Sharp would snag nearly 2/3 of the Bruins’ cap space. They still are in search of help along the blue line, though.
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