Breaking down a three-team trade that brings Robert Thomas to the Bruins

Boston Bruins fans are at a crossroads when it comes to what the team should do at the trade deadline. The team is on pace to make the playoffs, but most fans realize that the best move for the team's future is to sell off some of their assets. It's why when Robert Thomas' availability became a question for the St. Louis Blues, he became a player to circle for the Bruins.

Thomas is a 26-year-old center who would be under team control for the next five seasons at just $8.125 million annually. He has a no-trade clause, but it'd be hard to believe that he wouldn't waive it to leave the mess in St. Louis and come to Boston to be David Pastrnak's center for the next five years.

With Thomas available, trade proposals started flooding social media to see just how much Boston would have to give up to acquire him. Despite accruing some solid assets over the past year, one X user predicts that a three-team trade might be the way for the Bruins to get Thomas in black and gold.

In theory, this deal does check all the boxes for the Seattle Kraken. They aren't looking for a massive return for Shane Wright, and Jimmy Snuggerud fits the bill as a top-six scorer. It hasn't gone exactly how he would've liked in his rookie season, but his seven points over his last 10 games point to the belief that he is figuring it out.

The one question I'd have for this deal is if the Blues are getting enough in return for both Thomas and Snuggerud. Mason Lohrei and Shane Wright are young talents, and Lohrei was a favorite of Jim Montgomery when he was the coach of Boston. The Blues would be taking a risk that Wright could figure it out and make up for some of the loss of Thomas, while also getting Lohrei and the first-round pick from the Bruins.

If anyone is saying no to this deal, it's likely St. Louis. We already know that the Bruins are open to moving Lohrei and Matt Poitras from the rumors coming out of the Rasmus Andersson negotiations. Giving up a first-round pick this year doesn't seem too bad considering they are trending toward a playoff spot, and that would become even more of a reality with Thomas added to the forward group.

The framework of this deal is good, and adding a third team to get a center into the deal for the Blues makes sense. However, I am still under the belief that any Thomas-Bruins deal is going to have to include James Hagens.