When the 4 Nations Faceoff break came to a close in late February, it was becoming pretty clear that the Boston Bruins were not going to be part of the Eastern Conference playoff field. That left general manager Don Sweeney and the front office with some big decisions: stand pat or sell.
In the end, the decision was made to sell, and it was the right call. The trade deadline was on March 7, but Sweeney didn't waste any time starting his fire sale by dealing Justin Brazeau the night before to the Minnesota Wild after a frustrating loss to the Carolina Hurricanes in Raleigh. Then things really picked up the next afternoon.
Sweeney moved some cornerstone pieces, captain Brad Marchand, forward Charlie Coyle, and defenseman Brandon Carlo. It was a successful deadline with some key pieces that the Black and Gold got back in return, but according to one player traded, the writing was on the wall for some time.
Former Boston Bruins forward Charlie Coyle admitted the writing was on the wall as the trade deadline approached in March
One thing was clear: the Bruins, despite not being mathematically eliminated at the time, were heading in the wrong direction in the standings, and it was time for the front office to strike in what had been a long-overdue retool. They ended up moving some players, and Coyle sounds like someone who wasn't surprised after being shipped to the Colorado Avalanche.
“The writing was on the wall,” Coyle said to the Boston Globe. “We just weren’t playing that well and time was running out.”
The writing was certainly on the wall, and honestly, it was on the wall for a long time. The signs were there in training camp and then when former coach Jim Montgomery was fired. As all teams do, things got better for a while following the firing, but after the New Year, things started heading in the wrong direction again.
It was a tough decision that Sweeney had to make, but it had to be done. A reset was badly needed. This offseason hasn't been promising in terms of the Bruins looking at a retool rather than a rebuild, but if there is one thing that was clear, and Coyle said it, the writing was on the wall. After being traded to the Avalanche, he was traded again this summer and will be lacing up the skates for the Columbus Blue Jackets.