Bruins Rumors: Defenceman Expected To Sign Elsewhere

The Boston Bruins loaded up at the trade deadline and rightfully so considering the powerhouse they are this season. One of their additions, Dmitry Orlov, has fit in seamlessly and playing at over a point-per-game since arriving. This has made some think that the Bruins will be looking to extend him. But it will be tougher than expected.

Orlov is in the final year of a six-year, $5.1 million AAV deal and should see his salary and contract length on his next deal go up even more. This will likely be too rich for the Bruins, even if they do move one to two defencemen making significant money. Kevin Dupont stated that he doesn't expect the Bruins to keep Orlov past this season.

The Bruins have seven solid defencemen in their rotation this season. Many teams can't even get five. This is a result of everything coming together and them adding even more help. It has caused Matt Grzelcyk, Derek Forbort, and Connor Clifton to be rotated in and out of the lineup since the trade deadline and all of them have played great this season. If Orlov is expected to get his cap hit bumped up to at least $6-7 million, the Bruins would have to likely sacrifice two of Forbort, Grzelcyk, and Brandon Carlo to make it work, while at the same time having little room to address their depth up front.

David Pastrnak and Pavel Zacha's new contracts kick in next season while Jeremy Swayman, Patrice Bergeron, and more need new deals. This isn't the Bruins of old and the culture has shifted from taking less and being able to load up every year. This appears to be the last of those seasons and Orlov will likely have to move on unless he is willing to take a pay cut.