There are a few NHL teams that have their trade deadline path all but laid out. One of those teams is the St. Louis Blues. Coached by former Boston Bruins coach Jim Montgomery, it appears there is going to be a fire sale like the one Montgomery's former team went through last year.
The roles are reveresed this year between the Bruins and Blues. St. Louis made the playoffs as a wild-card team in the Western Conference, while the Black and Gold were buried in the standings—this year. The Blues are near the bottom of the standings, and Boston is clinging to a postseason berth.
This is going to be an interesting trade deadline for Bruins general manager Don Sweeney, who will likely be a buyer but will be a cautious buyer. He was reportedly close to buying back in January when he was close to acquiring Calgary Flames defenseman Rasmus Andersson, but the extension reportedly broke down and ended any chance of a deal getting done. There has been some smoke in Boston and St. Louis, and Bleacher Report believes that a deal between the two teams that met for the 2019 Stanley Cup is going to happen.
Bruins remained linked to Blues defenseman Justin Faulk
Lyle Richardson of Bleacher Report examined the latest trade rumors and did a BS meter for each one. When it came to the Bruins and Faulk, it wasn't BS, according to Richardson.
"Sweeney came very close to acquiring Andersson, even garnering permission from the Calgary Flames to speak with the blueliner's camp about a contract extension before he was traded to Vegas. It would be understandable that he'd shift his focus to Faulk, but it remains to be seen if he'll have better luck with him,'' wrote Richardson.
Faulk will have one more season remaining on his current contract with an AAV of $6.5 million. The 33-year-old right-shot is a good puck-moving defenseman, which would be a big addition on the backend for head coach Marco Sturm.
This is going to be one of those deadlines where Sweeney could buy, but also sell lightly on some expiring contracts. Defenseman Andrew Peeke could be moved and likely would be if Faulk is acquired. Forward Viktor Arvidsson is on an expiring deal, and if Boston doesn't see him as a part of their roster beyond this year, then moving Peeke makes sense.