Don Sweeney: No ‘hard and fast rule’ about trading Bruins’ first-rounder
The Bruins traded their first-round pick as part of the package for Nash last February, and any time a trade doesn’t result in a Stanley Cup championship, watching another team make that pick inspires regret on the part of the trading team.
After going through the 2018 NHL Draft without a first-round pick, Bruins general manager Don Sweeney didn’t regret making the Nash trade because he believed in Nash and last year’s roster to be able to make a long postseason run. But sitting out the first night of the draft was agonizing and Sweeney expressed he’d be reluctant to trade his first-round pick again. However, he’s not ruling out doing whatever it takes to improve his lineup before the Feb. 25 trade deadline.
“Until that deal [for Nash] really materialized we held [the first-rounder] out all the way [until the end],” Sweeney told WEEI.com this week. “We just felt that at the time and some of the pieces that we shifted around as a result, where we might’ve finished in the league, bottom of the first, top of the second based on where you are, we took a swing.
“I’m always going to want to be in a position to take a swing. We’re evaluating our team, where we are when we’re healthy, and that hasn’t been the case. Knock on whatever, Charlie coming back, maybe seeing what our team is, maybe that changes. I don’t have a hard and fast rule, but by design I’d be hesitant to be doing it.”
The Bruins traded their first-round pick as part of the package for Nash last February, and any time a trade doesn’t result in a Stanley Cup championship, watching another team make that pick inspires regret on the part of the trading team.
After going through the 2018 NHL Draft without a first-round pick, Bruins general manager Don Sweeney didn’t regret making the Nash trade because he believed in Nash and last year’s roster to be able to make a long postseason run. But sitting out the first night of the draft was agonizing and Sweeney expressed he’d be reluctant to trade his first-round pick again. However, he’s not ruling out doing whatever it takes to improve his lineup before the Feb. 25 trade deadline.
“Until that deal [for Nash] really materialized we held [the first-rounder] out all the way [until the end],” Sweeney told WEEI.com this week. “We just felt that at the time and some of the pieces that we shifted around as a result, where we might’ve finished in the league, bottom of the first, top of the second based on where you are, we took a swing.
“I’m always going to want to be in a position to take a swing. We’re evaluating our team, where we are when we’re healthy, and that hasn’t been the case. Knock on whatever, Charlie coming back, maybe seeing what our team is, maybe that changes. I don’t have a hard and fast rule, but by design I’d be hesitant to be doing it.”
