Will The Bruins Move Savard?
It is no secret that the Boston Bruins find them dangerously close to the National Hockey League’s salary cap. This would be fine if the Bruins did not still have to sign winger Blake Wheeler and defenseman Gregory Campbell. If the Bruins mean to retain both these players they are going to have to make a roster change. Recently it has been speculated that Marc Savard will be the victim of the Bruins careless spending.
Why the Bruins are above cap
The Boston Bruins have had a difficult time managing their cap over the past two seasons. Boston general manager Peter Chiarelli learned last year what Stan Bowman is learning this year in Chicago: when you have a good team it is hard to keep it together for consecutive seasons. In the 2008-09 season the Bruins were the class of the NHL, finishing with 116 points, only one behind the President Trophy winning San Jose Sharks. Since that season Boston has lost players left and right. The most notable was the loss of Phil Kessel to the Toronto Maple Leafs. Having just finished as the team’s top scorer Kessel was moved to the Leafs, simply because the Bruins could not afford the young star.
The Bruins would be fine right now if it were not for a trade to acquire Nathan Horton this summer. Chiarelli knew he needed to add depth at the wing, but that depth was going to come at a cost. The cost could be losing the services of Savard.
Is moving Savard the right move?
Many might argue that moving Savard is the best option for Chiarelli and the Bruins. Certainly Savard turns 33 on Saturday and he is not getting any younger, and to make matters worse he has suffered concussion problems, and his career could come to an end at any moment.
In addition the Bruins have a talented young centre in David Krejci, who could step in for Savard on the first line. Nevertheless the Bruins are not an offensive machine. They had one of the worst offences in the NHL last year, which is in stark contrast to 2008-09 when they were the best in the NHL. That season Savard played all 82 games and notched 88 points.
The Bruins struggled all last season with goal scoring and point production. The team’s leading point getters were Patrice Bergeron and Krejci, who only managed 52 points apiece. Savard played in only 41 games and tallied 33 points. It makes you question, where are the points going to come from if Savard is traded? Is Krejci a true number one centre? And is Nathan Horton going to be able to fill Kessel’s shoes?
Bruins Options
The Bruins could trade Savard, but the veteran has a no-trade clause, and has stated that he will only wave it to go to Toronto and Ottawa. These two divisional rivals are not exactly great choices for Chiarelli. In addition they will have the upper hand in the deal knowing they are his only choice.
The Bruins do have other options besides trading Savard. They can afford to keep Campbell, as he should only be expecting a small raise, somewhere around $1 million. As for Wheeler, the Bruins could sign him, probably to a contract worth roughly $2.5-$3 million, and then trade him. Wheeler has not posted the numbers he was expected to since he came into the league. This would be a good time to max out on his trade value. Another option would be to demote Michael Ryder who makes the same wage as Savard and produces far less.
Chiarelli finds himself in a quandary. He either trades his most dynamic offensive player, or is forced once again, to part ways with another young winger.
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