With each passing week, one thing surrounding the Boston Bruins seems clear: forwards Pavel Zacha and Casey Mittlestadt are going to be the topic of trade rumors until the trade deadline in March, or until they are traded.
Bruins general manager Don Sweeney is in no rush to deal either player; if he does, he may choose to hold onto one or both of them. Zacha and Mittlestadt have been the subject of trade rumors since the summer, and Bleacher Report's Lyle Richardson listed a handful of potential landing spots for Zacha, with multiple Atlantic Division teams on the list.
3 Bruins Atlantic Division rivals linked to Bruins center Pavel Zacha
Before we get into the potential landing spots, Pierre LeBrun of TSN reported that Sweeney is in no rush to deal Zacha and they could sign him to an extension as early as this summer as they might see him as a part of the future, but three teams in the division, the Buffalo Sabres, Montreal Canadiens, and Toronto Maple Leafs are linked to Zacha as potential trade destinations.
Richardson listed the Maple Leafs as one team, moving him to left wing and sliding either Matthew Knies or Bobby McCann to the right wing to make room for Zacha. Toronto hasn't filled the opening left by Mitch Marner going to the Vegas Golden Knights and will look to fill that through a trade between now and March. This is an unlikely destination.
As for the Canadiens, it is another unlikely destination for the 28-year-old as unless Montreal blows away Sweeney with a deal of picks, prospects, or whatever they would offer. Yes, Sweeney does have a recent history of trading players within the division, like he did last year with the Maple Leafs, when Brandon Carlo was shipped there, but it's hard to envision either the Habs or Leafs getting Zacha.
Buffalo is under pressure to win to get into the playoffs, but it likely doesn't have the assets to acquire Zacha from the Bruins.
As for other likely destinations listed by Richardson, the Minnesota Wild, Carolina Hurricanes, New York Rangers, and Vancouver Canucks are listed. It feels like the Canucks are going to be in on every name in the trade market until they get someone.
As far as Zacha and the Bruins go, Boston winning four out of their last five games makes them in no rush to trade him. Boston's front office still thinks they are a team that will contend for a playoff spot, so trading this earlier in the season seems very unlikely, especially a player like Zacha. It would be absolutely wild if Sweeney trades Zacha to either the Canadiens, Maple Leafs, or Sabres.