Charlie McAvoy and Jeremy Swayman have been out in the cold in the alleged Team USA Olympic group chat, watching the Vegas Golden Knights, Florida Panthers, and Minnesota Wild dominate all the disgruntled players' trade lists. The Boston Bruins haven't been featured on many of those lists, making fans wonder if Swayman and McAvoy didn't sit at the cool kids' table in the Olympic Village or whether Boston's future just doesn't look as bright as we think.
Nevertheless, with so many gold medalists asking out of their teams lately, there are only so many players that the desirable teams can take. That leaves some of the other teams on the outskirts with openings, and one big opening next to Charlie McAvoy on the Bruins' first-pair could easily be given to Zach Werenski.
With all eyes still on the recent Brady Tkachuk trade, the uncertain future of Auston Matthews in Toronto and Connor Hellebuyck in Winnipeg, and the reported trade request by Dylan Larkin, everyone's sights next went to the reigning Norris Trophy winner. The Columbus Blue Jackets have a bit of an uncertain future in their own right, and the league's top defenseman may not have much interest in sticking around.
Werenski, Blue Jackets, to meet after draft https://t.co/OWmIQJe3kE
— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) June 23, 2026
Elliotte Friedman reported on Tuesday that Werenski and the Blue Jackets will meet after the draft to discuss their future. It doesn't do a whole lot for teams like the San Jose Sharks who have some picks they might be willing to trade to acquire a superstar, but it does open up the possibility for some less-fortunate teams to stick their noses into the negotiations.
With Jonathan Aspirot being nowhere near what the Bruins need on a pairing with McAvoy, Werenski would become an ideal target if he were available. There are some talks about Frederic Brunet debuting in Boston this upcoming season, but even then, it's a risk to give McAvoy another AHL defenseman to spend on his side for the entire season.
If there is one opinion I have stayed firm with, it's that McAvoy needs at least an above-average defenseman on his pair. After years of trying to pick up the slack in Boston, his best days in a Bruins' uniform were when Zdeno Chara was mentoring him, and the best we've seen from him in a long time was at the Olympics when he paired with both Werenski and Quinn Hughes at different times.
The Bruins need more top-six scoring and a right-shot defenseman, but all that goes out the window if Werenski even considers the possibility of coming to Boston. For someone who can generate so much offense from the backend while also playing above-average defense, it'd be a no-brainer to get that deal done for Don Sweeney.
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