News Article: On cusp of free agency, Johnny Boychuk wants to stay with Bruins

[Absurdity]

Let's ask Spooner if he's comfortable playing defense...and watch the kid have a panic attack and lock himself in the closet...

I jest. I get what you're saying. I agree that Spooner as PPQB is interesting.

Problem is...Soderberg is cool. Haha

I think the Bruins will have a go at re-signing him.

Plus, as I said, Krug has been shown to work.

The line of guys that have worked as PPQB for the Bruins over the last half-decade is very small, while the line of talented failures is long.

Not messing with a ultra rare winner.

Soderberg is indeed cool . I hope the Bruins do re-sign him. I could see Spooner centering the 4th line, whether that's putting him in an area where he can succeed or not could be up for debate. I do agree though, don't fix something that's not broken. Although we do need to find a player to replace Iginla on Krejci's PP unit (solved within organization/roster or via trade), our PP has been the best it has been in years and shouldn't be fiddled around with. We'll see if Spooner can crack a spot on the roster in training camp, hopefully Boychuk is still around too.

 

[DitClapper]

In my honest opinion, next year it's either we keep Soderberg or Boychuk. Who would you rather keep? Real tough decision but for me it's Soderberg. Depends on cap also.

 

[Orrthebest]

Doesn't Krug hit FA after this season too though? Or is it two more years?

Krug will remain RFA until the age of 27. You remain RFA until age 27 or 7 seasons in the NHL.

 

[ODAAT]

I agree. This would be the dream solution. Chia really messed this up by giving these Cup payments, Kelly had no business getting that contract. I love Cage, I do. But that contract is killing us. I don't know what Chia will do, I'd just hate to see Johnny go. It would be a big mistake. Biiiiiiiig mistake.

Yet if Chia let those Cup performers go via trade/UFA or what have ya, fans here would be calling for his head too

Is Kelly`s deal hurting the team right now?? Sure, tis not like the guy`s getting Marty Lapointe cash

He`ll find a new home soon I wager

 

[GloveSave1]

Soderberg is indeed cool . I hope the Bruins do re-sign him. I could see Spooner centering the 4th line, whether that's putting him in an area where he can succeed or not could be up for debate. I do agree though, don't fix something that's not broken. Although we do need to find a player to replace Iginla on Krejci's PP unit (solved within organization/roster or via trade), our PP has been the best it has been in years and shouldn't be fiddled around with. We'll see if Spooner can crack a spot on the roster in training camp, hopefully Boychuk is still around too.

I don't think I'll live to see the day that a Clode team has anything but an energy/physical line for a 4th line. No chance for Spooner there. You gotta bang, or at least try, to play 4th line for the B's. That lines got one mindset...and it ain't slick.

 

[LouJersey]

Agree 100%

Boychuk is the epitome of a Boston Bruin, and will be very hard to replace, while Bartkowski's are a dime a dozen.



.....Manchuk knows how to take a number and get even ....the proper way.

That shift looked EXHAUSTING

 

[BMC]

If he gets moved only because salary dump, I'll be beyond pissed off.

No way he should go for $$$$ before Kelly and Bartowski.

If it's for a top winger it'll be easier to swallow I guess.

Amen.

And IMO anybody who still thinks Johnny Rocket will go for the big $ when he becomes UFA should read the article again. He loves it here and wants to stay, no reason why he & the Bruins can't make a deal that will make both of them happy.

 

[Altamira]

I think the Bruins either sign Boychuk or he walks away at the end of the year. There is too big a hole to fill on defense if they trade him this close to the season starting. The consensus seems to be that Boychuk would be traded for a young and talented winger, but I don't like our chances without Boychuk in the playoffs. Regular season I think they could get by, just like losing Siedenberg. Think about adding a D that doesn't fit whatsoever at the deadline out of desperation (Meszaros) if Boychuk is traded.

 

[BMC]

Agree 100%

Boychuk is the epitome of a Boston Bruin, and will be very hard to replace, while Bartkowski's are a dime a dozen.



.....Manchuk knows how to take a number and get even ....the proper way.

This is why you don't trade Boychuk right here. Trade Kelly & Bartkowski before you even think of trading #55.

 

[member 96824]

This is why you don't trade Boychuk right here. Trade Kelly & Bartkowski before you even think of trading #55.

This is what I would do, then you can address the forward spot..maybe using Subban+?

I've always wondered what the cost of Emerson Etem would be, not that they need Subban in any way, shape, or form.

 

[Fair Warning]

Hope they can find a way to keep him -- the blue-line and team as a whole becomes softer without him.

 

[smithformeragent]

This is why you don't trade Boychuk right here. Trade Kelly & Bartkowski before you even think of trading #55.

That doesn't get it done in terms of cap space and you then have another hole at FWD to fill.

Hard to fit in defensemen at $7m, $4m and $6m (Chara, Seids and JB) any way you slice it.

 

[BMC]

That doesn't get it done in terms of cap space and you then have another hole at FWD to fill.

Hard to fit in defensemen at $7m, $4m and $6m (Chara, Seids and JB) any way you slice it.

Isn't the cap going up next year? I believe so and I think a lot of people are forgetting that.

Solid defensemen who are also playoff warriors are very hard to find. When you find one you keep him and damn the price. As much as I like Matt Bartkowski defensemen like him are a nickel a ton.

 

[Hali33]

I don't want to see him moved at all.

But if he does move then some of Kelly, Campbell and Bart need to go with him. Boychuk moving as a simple salary dump would be infuriating. His salary is excellent and is not the problem. To me there is no excuse for Boychuk leaving and Kelly staying. I love to drinketh of the Chiarelli koolaid served here but not on this.

Moving Boychuk to acquire a RW is not enough in itself as we wouldn't have the space to pay this player without additional moves. I've said before I understand this move even if I don't like it. But I still think having a rock solid defense and safety net with Boychuk is more beneficial than having a more proven 3rd line RW. I see Boychuk having an overall greater impact on this team than a RW. Imagine if we move Boychuk find Seidenberg has a hard time coming back from his injury or it re-injures. That would be an absolute disaster.

Our depth in defense is misleading. We have a lot of guys who could come up and be a bottom pairing defenseman on this team and do well, but there's no one I feel great about coming up and taking Boychuk's spot in the top 4.

 

[smithformeragent]

Isn't the cap going up next year? I believe so and I think a lot of people are forgetting that.

Solid defensemen who are also playoff warriors are very hard to find. When you find one you keep him and damn the price. As much as I like Matt Bartkowski defensemen like him are a nickel a ton.

I feel like that's been the fallback line around these parts for some time, yet they still find themselves cornered here.

Sure, the cap will likely go up, but you need to re-sign guys and bring in free agents and they're going to be getting contracts at or around market value. Krug needs to be locked up and Lucic will likely get a raise in two years.

You can't pay everyone. It'll come down to choices.

I'm a fan of Boychuk by the way. I just get sick of hearing that dealing Kelly is the answer to everything. It's not. It may be part of the solution, but I feel like people are oversimplifying things. (in general, not you per se)

 

[Tim Vezina Thomas]

We should sign Boychuk to the league minimum and this wouldn't be a problem! So selfish of him,

 

[Fire Sweeney]

Amen.

And IMO anybody who still thinks Johnny Rocket will go for the big $ when he becomes UFA should read the article again. He loves it here and wants to stay, no reason why he & the Bruins can't make a deal that will make both of them happy.

No reason either why he would take less money when Chiarelli willingly hands out too much money at Kelly, McQuaid, Campbell, Bartkowski and Caron.

 

[member 96824]

Isn't the cap going up next year? I believe so and I think a lot of people are forgetting that.

Solid defensemen who are also playoff warriors are very hard to find. When you find one you keep him and damn the price. As much as I like Matt Bartkowski defensemen like him are a nickel a ton.

While yes, the cap is going up...alot of that is already accounted for. For example, if you were to give JB55 $6M and the cap goes to $74M(A number I've seen floating around in projections), you've already eaten $4.64M of that $5M increase.

I'm assuming that Krug and Smith get one year deals, so they'll be up again, along with Dougie and Carl for huge impact players.

I don't think it's a forgetting that the cap is going up, I think it's that it doesn't really matter with the way our situation is playing out.

 

[GloryDaze4877]

No reason either why he would take less money when Chiarelli willingly hands out too much money at Kelly, McQuaid, Campbell, Bartkowski and Caron.

Chia has done that at times, but I think the examples you chose (with the exception of Kelly), don't exactly prove your point.

Four of the five "examples" make $1.6m or less (Caron only $600k).

 

[member 96824]

Chia has done that at times, but I think the examples you chose (with the exception of Kelly), don't exactly prove your point.

Four of the five "examples" make $1.6m or less (Caron only $600k).

While true, I would say that all of those roles can be filled by 1M or less.

That adds up when spread amongst 4 or 5 players.

Using $1M each for easy math(although I think you could do it even cheaper), you're looking at $3.41M in extra right there by just replacing Kelly, Campbell, McQuaid, and Bartkowski with cheaper alternatives. So then it comes to the questions, and I'll use UFA's that moved as an example, is Campbell really worth double what a guy like Malhotra is worth? I don't personally believe so. Kelly worth 3x what Lee Stempniak is? No way.

Obviously there's no guarantee those guys sign here...but just for demostrative purposes. An extra 3.41M or more on the books would definitely be nice.

 

[jgatie]

Chia has done that at times, but I think the examples you chose (with the exception of Kelly), don't exactly prove your point.

Four of the five "examples" make $1.6m or less (Caron only $600k).

It's like arguing for term limits and citing Jimmy Carter and Gerald Ford as examples of politicians who stayed too long.

 

[GloryDaze4877]

People need to get it through their heads that Boychuk and Bartkowski are two separate issues, and dealing one doesn't really solve the issue with the other.

As Dom pointed out, if Boychuk goes, it will be a "hockey trade", and not a cap-savings move. It will be the B's trading a guy from an area that they perceive as a strength (right or wrong) to address an area of weakness (say RW).

I think the B's could survive dealing Boychuk provided one of two things happen:

1) One or more of the youngsters (Bart, Trotman, Miller, Morrow, etc.) step up and show us a better level of play than they did last year.

2) In a separate move the B's acquire a d-man that is more capable than the young guys they currently have, but will not cost as much as JB going forward, and is hopefully a few years younger.

For example, say the B's traded Boychuk to EDM for a guy like Perron, now you have three legit Top 9 RW's.

You lock Soderberg up to an extension (or plan to) which may block a guy like Spooner's path to the NHL. So you then turn around and deal Spooner and Bart for a guy like Jared Cowen, that is locked up for three years for around $3m. The players I mentioned here are just hypotheticals.

THEN you deal Kelly

A third possibility would that Boychuk would take a hometown discount and sign for Seidenberg money, I think the B's could make it work now and going forward if he were to do that.

 

[GloryDaze4877]

While true, I would say that all of those roles can be filled by 1M or less.

That adds up when spread amongst 4 or 5 players.

Using $1M each for easy math(although I think you could do it even cheaper), you're looking at $3.41M in extra right there by just replacing Kelly, Campbell, McQuaid, and Bartkowski with cheaper alternatives. So then it comes to the questions, and I'll use UFA's that moved as an example, is Campbell really worth double what a guy like Malhotra is worth? I don't personally believe so. Kelly worth 3x what Lee Stempniak is? No way.

Obviously there's no guarantee those guys sign here...but just for demostrative purposes. An extra 3.41M or more on the books would definitely be nice.

Which is why I said with the exception of Kelly

The "extra" is significantly less when you remove him from the equation. Could you find players equal to the three cited above for $1m per? Maybe? But we are only talking a savings of $1.5m total for the three...or half of what Kelly makes by himself.

 

[Hali33]

People need to get it through their heads that Boychuk and Bartkowski are two separate issues, and dealing one doesn't really solve the issue with the other.

As Dom pointed out, if Boychuk goes, it will be a "hockey trade", and not a cap-savings move. It will be the B's trading a guy from an area that they perceive as a strength (right or wrong) to address an area of weakness (say RW).

I think the B's could survive dealing Boychuk provided one of two things happen:

1) One or more of the youngsters (Bart, Trotman, Miller, Morrow, etc.) step up and show us a better level of play than they did last year.

2) In a separate move the B's acquire a d-man that is more capable than the young guys they currently have, but will not cost as much as JB going forward, and is hopefully a few years younger.

For example, say the B's traded Boychuk to EDM for a guy like Perron, now you have three legit Top 9 RW's.

You lock Soderberg up to an extension (or plan to) which may block a guy like Spooner's path to the NHL. So you then turn around and deal Spooner and Bart for a guy like Jared Cowen, that is locked up for three years for around $3m. The players I mentioned here are just hypotheticals.

THEN you deal Kelly

A third possibility would that Boychuk would take a hometown discount and sign for Seidenberg money, I think the B's could make it work now and going forward if he were to do that.

I think the problem for me is that Boychuk doesn't make very much money. If you deal him for a RW you still have to pay that player. Still have to free up space which means you would have to make additional moves either way. Whatever RW we would acquire to make the trade worth it, I can't imagine they would make a whole lot less than Boychuk.

When I ask myself would having a better #3 RW make this team stronger than having the solid defense and safety net we would have with Boychuk, I say no. There has to be a one of our kids who can produce next to Soderberg. And if not I think it would be a hell of a lot easier to upgrade that spot at the deadline than trying to upgrade our defense. We saw how difficult that was this past season.

 

[GloryDaze4877]

I think the problem for me is that Boychuk doesn't make very much money. If you deal him for a RW you still have to pay that player. Still have to free up space which means you would have to make additional moves either way. Whatever RW we would acquire to make the trade worth it, I can't imagine they would make a whole lot less than Boychuk.

When I ask myself would having a better #3 RW make this team stronger than having the solid defense and safety net we would have with Boychuk, I say no. There has to be a one of our kids who can produce next to Soderberg. And if not I think it would be a hell of a lot easier to upgrade that spot at the deadline than trying to upgrade our defense. We saw how difficult that was this past season.

He doesn't make that much money THIS YEAR. However, when you look at what he could command (if he wants to) going forward, as Brad pointed out earlier, even with a Cap increase next year, the B's would have issues. So, I guess rather than get nothing at the end of the year, you deal him now to address a need? I like Boychuk, but he is in a position where he can make a lot of money starting next year, and is also a guy they could get a good return for.