If there's one thing we know about new Boston Bruins GM Don Sweeney only a few short months into his tenure at the top of the personnel totem pole, it's that he's unafraid to make the bold, and oftentimes unpopular, decision. Shortly after trading away budding defensive star Dougie Hamilton this offseason in a deal that netted what most would consider a haul as weak as Dennis Seidenberg's aging joints, Sweeney shipped off bruising forward, built-to-be-a-Bruin and fan favorite, Milan Lucic. Sweeney's decisions since - flipping Martin Jones, picking up Matt Beleskey - seemed to bring things back into some semblance of alignment - even if the trade for Zach Rinaldo still has some around the NHL scratching their heads - so he's not exactly in the doghouse with Bruins fans. Still, the freshly-minted Boston GM has shown already a propensity for doing whatever he thinks is right for the franchise, even at the expense of his own approval rating. If this 2015-16 Bruins season - a season which started off with something less like a bang and more like a hollow pop on Thursday night - falls apart, could we see more unpopular decisions from the first-year NHL personnel man?
It's hard to fathom, especially as it concerns certain players who have been so integral to the B's success over the past several seasons, including the Cup run of 2011, but with an aging core and a team seemingly in transition, would it really be so wrong to suggest that stars like increasingly injury-prone captain Zdeno Chara or All World netminder Tuukka Rask could be sent elsewhere for what would, presumably, amount to an absolute bundle of sorely-needed picks and prospects? Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman suggested recently while appearing on Calgary's Sportsnet 960 that Sweeney's willingness to make the hard decisions coupled with the hefty contracts of players like Chara and Rask, could mean that anything really is possible in Boston.
"Chara - he's got to play. But I could see another situation where maybe another team might be interested. The question is, though, do they want to do it," Friedman said, via TodaysSlapShot.com.
"Rask - there were rumors about him last summer and I checked and I was told no, that he wasn't available and he probably wouldn't be available until either Subban or Zane McIntyre, the kid they signed out of North Dakota, was ready.
"Now, I think if you're really in the tank you can always change that. If depends on what the player wants too. But like I said, there were rumblings about Rask last summer and I was just told they weren't going to do it while those other kids were too green and just not ready to be the guys.
"But I think it's worth watching."
Subban and McIntyre aren't yet ready for full-time NHL duty, and the Boston blueline already looks mighty thin without Chara this season, especially considering Reilly Smith followed Hamilton quickly out the door this offseason and Seidenberg isn't expected back for several months at least. Torey Krug is a budding star in his own right, but there's simply no way he and some combination of Adam McQuaid, Joe Morrow, Kevvin Miller or Zach Trotman and Matt Irwin comprise a Cup-worthy blueline.
That, in and of itself, may be a reason not to deal the towering Chara - that and his aforementioned no-move clause. But again, with his increasing fragility and nearly $7 million cap hit the next two seasons - and contract that doesn't run out until 2017-18, at which point he'll be 41 - if another team comes calling at the trade deadline and the B's are already out of contention, it would likely be difficult for Sweeney to wave the offer away.
As for Rask, it was only two seasons ago that the team handed him an eight-year, $56 million contract extension. His own $7 million annual cap hit is heavy, but his statistical performance last year - .922 save percentage, 2.30 goals against average - in 70 games of work for a hard-luck Bruins team, and his age - he's still just 28 - should only solidify his status as one of the league's elite goaltenders.
Of course, that also means his value to another team looking for such an asset - the Buffalo Sabres, perhaps? - would likely be willing to shell out top dollar. Is it worth it for the Bruins to ship out an established star like Rask, still in the prime of his career, if it helps aid the team in other areas? It's generally a bad idea to weaken a position of strength to shore up deficiencies elsewhere, and again, neither Subban or McIntyre has proven worthy of NHL duty - Subban saw one game's worth of action in 2014-15, surrendering three goals, though his .921 save percentage and 2.44 goals against average for the Bruins' AHL affiliate last year was certainly respectable - so the answer here on Rask is probably, "no."
But Chara? At 38 and simply no longer the player he once was - and yes, a hobbled Chara is still an effective and at times dominant Chara - it may be best to get him healthy, ease him back into the lineup and sell as high as possible before demand, and the hopes for Boston's future, evaporate completely.
