Report: Bruins, Sabres Talking Trade
The Boston Bruins are looking to add both a forward and a defenseman by the trade deadline, and The Fourth Period's Shawn Hutcheon reports that the Buffalo Sabres are front and centre in their discussions.
Sabres assistant GM Jason Karmanos was seen scouting the last two Boston games, reports Hutcheon.
The Bruins may have interest in Sabres veteran forwards Kyle Okposo and Zemgus Girgensons, both of whom are playing on expiring contracts and are eligible to become unrestricted free agents July 1st.
The 35-year-old Okposo has a $2.5 million cap hit while Girgensons, 30, takes the exact same chunk of cap space.
The Bruins have next to zero cap room available, and will have to ship out something in order to make any trades work, hence the Sabres checking out some of their players.
Boston will get a little bit of cap help when they're expected to place rookie center Matthew Poitras on long-term injured reserve on Monday after he unfortunately was forced to have season-ending shoulder surgery last week. That adds only $870,000 to their cap space however, still leaving them shy of $1 million in total space.
In addition, the Beantowners lack draft capital and high-end prospects to move, making it even more certain that current players on the roster will have to be moved in order to get something done.
If the Bruins are looking for some blueline help from Buffalo, one Sabres D-man who could be on the move, with his blessing, is veteran Erik Johnson. But his $3.25 million contract will be even tougher for the Bruins to absorb, without some retention by Buffalo.
The biggest move the Bruins might be forced to make to clear up some space involves young veteran Jake DeBrusk. The impending UFA has a $4 million cap hit, and as we reported this past week, the Bruins are facing a big decision on what do with the 27 year old. If no extension is forthcoming, he could be the big sacrificial lamb at the deadline.
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