Bruin Up a Trade With Boston

As we continue the series, we move on to the Boston Bruins.

A team in a bit of a transition being that their former GM, Peter Chiarelli, is now our GM and head coach Claude Julien footing seems to be a bit shaky at the moment. The Bruins seemed to lack that sniper that they otherwise would’ve had had they not traded Tyler Seguin. Their defence is aging and their once rugged style of play has become ineffective. What Bruin will I target?

The player that I’d like to take a look at from the Bruins is Patrice Bergeron.

Whoa! Didn’t you say in the last post you weren’t going to propose the other team’s superstars?

Well I did indeed say that but usually we’re talking about Milan Lucic or Zdeno Chara when we discuss moving for a player out of Boston. Patrice Bergeron is almost too obvious meaning that he most likely falls under the category of “untouchable” but I disagree. I think he could be had but for a price, a very steep one. But as I’m soon to explain, it will all make sense so let’s carry on and take a look at what Bergeron could give the Edmonton Oilers.

Bergeron has been the top faceoff man in the NHL three out of the last four seasons. This past season he won over 60% of the draws he took. That’s insane! He’s the NHL’s best faceoff man and has been for almost a half decade.

If puck possession is the name of the game, the Patrice Bergeron is your man. If you study Rob Vollman’s player usage charts you’ll know that the best defensive hockey players lie in the upper left corner of the chart with big dark blue dots. Bergeron is there so often year after year that they should just name that part of the chart the Bergeron quadrant. It means that he gets the worst zone starts and faces the leagues toughest opponents.

I included the Oilers two best centers for comparison.

He’s one of the best defensive forwards in the league winning the Frank J. Selke Trophy twice in the last three seasons and when he didn’t win he was 2nd place or in the top 5 for voting. He’s up for the prestigious award again this year. And with the Oilers allowing an average of 30 shots against last season they would do well to improve the defensive and puck possession sides of their game.

Edmonton is stacked down the middle now with the upcoming addition of Connor McDavid but the average age of those centers is 22.8. There is a dire need for experience in the lineup. Sure, they could keep recycling bottom 6 veterans and 3rd pairing dmen that are on the verge of retirement but wouldn’t it make more sense to add one of the most effective hockey players in the NHL in Patrice Bergeron? A Champion. A leader. A mentor for one of the brightest hockey teams we’ve ever seen assembled.

I have a controversial deal in mind regarding Patrice Bergeron.

1. Bergeron and Brad Marchand for Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Martin Marincin – This is a tough call. RNH is starting to emerge as the player everyone expected when Edmonton drafted him 1st overall but like I said above, the team is too young down the middle and could afford to sacrifice one of the young centers for a proven NHL player.Boston is surely looking for a franchise no.1 center since giving up on Seguin so the pain of having to deal away Bergeron is lessened by the return. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins would follow in the footsteps of former all-star playmaking Bruins like Adam Oates, Jean Ratelle, Phil Esposito, and Milt Schmidt.The deal would also allow McDavid to start the season at his natural position alongside Taylor Hall, Jordan Eberle, Benoit Pouliot, or Nail Yakupov. Leon Draisaitl could be put on the wing (bottom 6) or sent to Bakersfield to marinate (better option). Damn the Oilers’ top 6 is stacked!Marchand I like because he’s such a sh*t disturber but actually quite effective when it comes to the puck possession game. He’s also the kind of player who can float throughout the lineup. Boston has Khokhlechev and Anthony Camara coming through the ranks on the wing but they’re defence needs a kickstart. Marincin has no future in Edmonton and he partnered up with Zdeno Chara at the most recent Olympics, so there’s that to consider. Maybe Chara could get something out of Marincin…

Is it too much, not enough?

I hope you enjoyed the post! Let me know in the comments below if you agree with my suggestion. Don’t forget to add me on Twitter (@beerleagueheroe) and visit my main page for more fun and speculation!

Thanks for reading! Take Care!