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Even as the Boston Bruins play host to the Tampa Bay Lightning for a rare Sunday night tilt at TD Garden, the focus remains on just what B’s general manager
Don Sweeney will, or won’t do, with pending unrestricted free agent and the club’s second-highest scorer,
Loui Eriksson.
The 30-year-old Eriksson, with 23 goals and 48 points through 62 games this season, is in line for a major payday, and the Black and Gold have tried their best to find a middleground to appease both parties. The Bruins recently upped their offer to four years (believed to be worth around $22 million in total), but still, and expectedly, they have been unable to come to terms with Eriksson’s camp.
“There have been ongoing discussions,” Sweeney confirmed prior to tonight’s game. “Certainly, they have their position and we have ours. I’d like to find a deal, but it hasn’t happened to this point, and you guys know me well enough now that I’m not one to be disclosing where those parameters lie.”
But that doesn’t mean that Sweeney has ruled out what has seemingly become the most viable option, and that’s moving Eriksson out for a major return (think something comparable to the Andrew Ladd trade between the Winnipeg Jets and defending Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks last Friday).
“Loui’s a good player. He’s having a great season. He’s very important for our success up to date, and we treat it as such,” said Sweeney. “If another team, and I’ve had several discussions with other teams, felt that was equal on that side of it, the deal was a right fit, then that’s something we’d explore.
“But my preference has been all along to try and sign him, and go from there.”
It’s not feast or famine when it comes to Eriksson, either, as the Bruins are comfortable with hanging on to Eriksson beyond tomorrow’s 3 p.m. trade deadline, even without an extension in place.
“Loui [Eriksson] is a valuable player and other teams are probably seeing him accordingly as such. To me, as the question was asked earlier, he’s an impactful player in our hockey club,” Sweeney admitted when asked of keeping him. “I would have continuing negotiations with him. You know we value him; we’ve offered him a significant contract. There’s a gap there that exists at times with players and we’ll see where it goes. Doesn’t mean I’ll stop between now and then as to whether or not something will materialize…bottom line you have to do what’s best for the organization and move forward.”
The Los Angeles Kings, Minnesota Wild, St. Louis Blues, and even the Lightning are among the teams that have expressed an interest in acquiring Eriksson from the Bruins. And given the load-up from the ‘Hawks, it’s safe to expect a possible ‘desperation’ offer from a Western club before the deadline, too.
While the Eriksson situation has been the focal point of Boston’s deadline, the Bruins remain in on some Western Conference defensemen, including Calgary’s Kris Russell and Vancouver Canucks veteran blue-liner
Dan Hamhuis. Both, like Eriksson, are pending free agents.
“I think anybody that has an opportunity to improve their club, be it as you described, a top-four potential, top-four defenseman, I think they’d be excited to do that,” Sweeney noted. “What the cost of that is, is what we’re all balancing. During the last several weeks, I’ve had a lot of discussions with 29 other general managers, to see where they’re trying to improve their clubs, and the overwhelming thought is that we’ve stockpiled a number of players and I think that it has set this organization up going forward very well and we’ve done a very good job this year. Our team has grown along as we’ve said. I think our players have done a good job and I think our coaches have also done a good job.
“As we stand right now, we’re in a playoff position. I’d like to try and help and support the group, and that’s what it’s really all about.”
To help create some roster flexibility, the Bruins placed
Zac Rinaldo on waivers before tonight’s game.
Ty Anderson has been covering the National Hockey League for HockeyBuzz.com since 2010, has been a member of the Pro Hockey Writers Association's Boston Chapter since 2013, and can be contacted on Twitter, or emailed at Ty.AndersonHB[at]gmail.com.
Boston Bruins Blogger •Bruins Feature Columnist • 
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