BOSTON — The Bruins are likely to be at least partial sellers at Friday’s deadline as they face a difficult path to get into the playoffs.
Five players have full no-movement clauses and five others have partial no-trade clauses.
Here’s which players have what movement restrictions and how they might interest contenders if the Bruins look to sell:
Full No-Movement Clause
The Bruins have players who would have to approve any trade:
David Pastrnak — The Bruins rebuild/retool will be done around Pastrnak, who in recent weeks has shown just how good an offensive player he is.
Charlie McAvoy — The NHL 4 Nations Face-Off was a reminder of how high McAvoy’s ceiling is. He too will be part of whatever is coming next.
Elias Lindholm —A year from now, if Lindholm has struggled for a second straight year in Boston, maybe there’s a conversation between he and the team might have a conversation about waiving his trade protection for a fresh start. But for now, it probably makes more sense to hope Year 2 is a bounce-back.
Hampus Lindholm — Hampus Lindholm might have been a trade candidate if he was willing and healthy. At 31, with a reasonable $6.5 million salary, he’d likely have appealed to a contender and the idea of going to a playoff team might have made him waive his no-trade. But that’s not happening.
Nikita Zadorov — His uneven start with so many penalties soured some fans on him early. But he’s actually been exactly what the Bruins signed him to be. On a team with a -28 goal differential, Zadorov has been a +15. He’s gotten better over the course of the season and if McAvoy and Hampus Lindholm were healthy, he’d be well-suited for the bottom-four shut-down defenseman role.
Modified no-trade clause
Last year showed that the Bruins would make a trade without knowing for sure if the player would accept it when they completed a deal for Linus Ullmark, who used his no-trade to reject it.
The fact that the Bruins are likely starting a rebuild might make some of these players more likely to at least consider a trade for the chance to land with a legit Stanley Cup contender.
These Bruins made their lists before they knew they were going to be struggling and not guaranteed to make the playoffs. Their willingness to move might have changed.
Here’s who has trade restrictions and how many teams are on them according to Puckapedia:
Brad Marchand: 8-team no trade clause — He will be a free agent after the season, but he and Don Sweeney have both said they’d like him to come back next year. He’s unlikely to be moved.
Pavel Zacha: 10-team no-trade — Zacha has two years of $4.75 million after this season. Since David Krejci retired, Pastrnak has been at his best on Zacha’s wing. Trading Zacha and his reasonable salary would leave the Bruins even more desperate at center.
Brandon Carlo: 10-team no-trade — The 28-year-old has two more years at $4.1 million. Carlo hasn’t been talked about as a target a lot. But he’s got a reasonable contract. He’s good in his own end, can kill penalties and has a lot of playoff experience. The Bruins could potentially get a solid return for him.
Charlie Coyle: 8-team no trade — At 33, Coyle has one more year at $5.25 million. He feels like the most likely to block a trade. Coyle is playing at home and has built huge community ties. But he’d be a good third-line forward for a contender. He’s a good penalty killer and a good culture guy. Trading him would allow the Bruins to open some cap space and get younger. He’s running out of chances to win a cup, so he could be at least tempted.
Joonas Korpisalo: 10-team no trade — With Ottawa retaining some of his salary, he has three more years at $3 million. So he’s not expensive. He’d be a solid insurance policy if a team needs a backup goalie.
No restrictions
Jeremy Swayman — Swayman’s no-trade protection doesn’t actually start until 2026-27, but it would be stunning if the Bruins traded him now.
Matt Poitras and Mason Lohrei — On a team without many young players in the pipeline, these two are a big part of the future. Hard to see either of them getting dealt in a rebuild.
Morgan Geekie — He’s a restricted free agent having a good year. Would trading him be selling high or moving on from someone who could be part of the Bruins’ future success? It would likely take a lot to pry him away.
Trent Frederic — His value is fascinating. If he’s healthy, his floor is big, physical wing with playoff experience. His ceiling includes some offense too. But he’s hurt. How hurt? The Bruins haven’t been specific. Has his down year depressed his value enough for the Bruins to be able to re-sign him? Has it depressed his value enough that they won’t get enough for him to move him? He’ll be an unrestricted free agent.
Justin Brazeau — He looked like he was going to be the team’s surprise success story to start the year, but he has just one goal and two assists since New Year’s. But he’s had a lot of fourth-line duty and some healthy scratches in recent weeks. He’ll be an unrestricted free agent after the season. Does someone look at him and think they can spark him or has he reverted back to the mean?
Mark Kastelic — He’s a solid fourth-liner with a very manageable contract. He’ll likely stay put.
John Beecher — Beecher has some trade value as a penalty killer and has a history of being good on faceoffs. Still hard to picture he’d fetch a lot. But he’ll be a restricted free agent after the year and if the Bruins don’t expect to sign him and someone would give up a late pick for him, it’s possible.
Andrew Peeke — Peeke has been much better with the Bruins than he was in Columbus, but at $2.75 million with another year on his contract, he might be worth more to keep.
Cole Koepke, Parker Wotherspoon — Not much trade value for these two unrestricted free agents making less than a million.
- BETTING: Check out our MA sports betting guide, where you can learn basic terminology, definitions and how to read odds for those interested in learning how to bet in Massachusetts.
