3 Bruins' Sign-and-Trade Options

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There were a couple of reasons why the Boston Bruins didn’t end up with Elias Lindholm this season. The big one seems to be the inability to work out a sign-and-trade, but draft capital played a part as well. Just like in 2021-22 when the team acquired Hampus Lindholm from the Anaheim Ducks and signed him to an eight-year deal, the Bruins are once again looking for more than just a rental this season.

Trading for and signing Hampus Lindholm worked very well for Boston, but then a different approach to the trade deadline was tried in 2023. This saw a number of upcoming UFAs be brought in for a playoff run that lasted seven games. Not only did the Bruins use draft capital (2023 and 2024 first-round picks and more) to acquire their deadline players for what was expected to be a deep playoff run, none of those players stuck around and all joined new teams.

It is evident that the Bruins need help up front the most as they lost many significant pieces in the offseason due to retirement and cap restraints. While I don’t think the Bruins are going to be particularly picky in bringing in a winger or center, it makes more sense if the team was looking at signing a center after they brought him in before the deadline.

It makes little sense to sign a veteran in their early-to-mid 30s to a deal immediately if the Bruins acquire one like Adam Henrique, but someone younger who will impact their team could be the target here. With so few impactful centermen to choose from this season, options are limited and we have to think outside of the box.

There have been rumors of the Buffalo Sabres being open to trading Casey Mittelstadt as Tage Thompson and Dylan Cozens are already signed long-term and Mittelstadt is a RFA at the end of the season. While he is a center that can also play the wing, he is going to be looking to get paid on a long-term deal. This could be the thing the Bruins are looking for as the young Sabres’ forward has shown consistent development and has already broken out. His cap hit is just $2.5 million AAV this season and the Bruins will be freed up of a lot of space to make some big signings or moves as well.

Another option at center who isn’t as young (29 years old) is Alex Wennberg from the Seattle Kraken. It wouldn’t be very smart to give him an eight-year deal, but a 3-5 year deal would work just fine. Wennberg has proven to be a solid two-way player and is fairly underrated. His offense hasn’t been amazing on the poor teams he’s played for, but he has reached 59 points in his career. With better wingers, he could be a strong second-line center for the Bruins and allow them to have Pavel Zacha play on the wing.

An interesting option is Noah Hanifin. Three of the Bruins’ top-six defensemen are UFAs after the season, so bringing in a top defender and signing him would work out well, especially with Hanifin who is only 27 years old. Bruins’ reporter Jimmy Murphy stated that the Bruins and Calgary Flames have talked about a Hanifin trade throughout the season. Frank Seravalli also said that Hanifin revealed that he has a desire to play for the Tampa Bay Lightning one day. While this doesn’t have to be right now and the Bruins could be an appealing destination, that is something that might halt a sign-and-trade between Boston and Calgary.

Elias Lindholm was really the sign-and-trade target that most suited the Bruins this season. I’m not counting out a push for him in free agency if he makes it there, but there’s no guarantee and the Bruins must do what they can to continue to compete at the high level they are and give themselves the best shot to win this season.

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