The Boston Bruins have been something of a surprise this season. They went into the Olympic break as the fifth place team in the Atlantic Division with 69 points, a position that put them inside the Eastern Conference playoff structure as the No. 8 seed.
That sounds like a tenuous position, but the Bruins have been playing some of their best hockey of the season. They recorded a 10-1-3 record in their final 14 games prior to the Olympic break, and that included back-t0-back shootout losses to Tampa Bay and Florida. The loss to the Lightning in the outdoor game at Raymond James Stadium came after the Bruins had built a 5-1 lead, and they needed a 2-goal, third period comeback to extend the game against the Panthers to overtime.
As well as the Bruins have played prior to the break, head coach Marco Sturm and general manager Don Sweeney knows the Bruins have room to grow. Most NHL observers have been impressed with the team, but few look at the Bruins and believe they have the talent and drive to go deep in the playoffs, let alone win the Stanley Cup.
Sturm and his players are not about to start listening to outside voices. A move by the March 6 trade deadline will create headlines, but the correct move has to be made.
Going into the season, Bruins supporters were still lamenting the retirement of centers Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci after the 2023 Stanley Cup playoffs. Losing their Nos. 1 and 2 centers clearly diminished the team, and while the Bruins survived in 2023-24, they fell apart last year and finished in last place in the division.
Adding a center has to be considered, but making the right move will not be easy.
Bruins overcoming expectations
The addition of Sturm behind the bench has turned out to be a great move for the Bruins. He has helped the team get back to its identity as a hard-hitting, aggressive team that will take advantage of mistakes and is difficult to score against.
The issue that came to the surface with the retirement of Bergeron and Krejci remains a subject for Sweeney. The Bruins have seen Elias Lindholm and Pavel Zacha as their top two centers. Both are out with day-to-day injuries, but neither one is expected to miss significant time when the season resumes during the final week of February.
Sweeney has to decide if the Bruins need to improve their play at the center position and that a trade should be made to increase the team's productivity at this key position.
While the Bruins are in a playoff-hopeful position, the New York Rangers are not. The Rangers have already traded high-scoring Artemi Panarin to the Los Angeles Kings, and center Vincent Trocheck could be next. NHL insider Frank Servalli has suggested that while deals between the Bruins and the Rangers are rare, one that sends Trocheck to the Bruins is a legitimate possibility.
Trocheck is the Rangers' third-leading scorer in this disappointing season. He has scored 12 goals and 24 assists in 43 games while averaging just under 21 minutes per game. He has a minus-16 rating and has connected for goals on 15.2 percent of his shots.
Bruins don't need expensive Trocheck to reach goals
Trocheck is a 13-year NHL veteran, having played 7 years with the Florida Panthers and 3 seasons wih the Carolina Hurricanes in addition to his time with the Rangers. He has his best season with the Rangers in 2023-24 when he scored 25 goals and 52 assists for 77 points. He was named an All-Star that season and had a plus-16 rating.
In addition to his regular-season performance, he also had his best Stanley Cup playoff showing in the 2024 postseason. He scored 8 goals and added 12 assists for 20 points in 16 games. Trocheck scored a double-overtime goal in New York's second-round series against the Hurricanes, a series the Rangers won in 6 games.
Acquiring a player like Trocheck would almost certainly be an expensive proposition for the Bruins. Trocheck is under contract through the 2028-29 season, so the Rangers are not going to give up a potential star with three additional seasons of control for a minor leaguer and a low-level draft pick.
Since the Bruins have been able to rebound from their low point a year ago without having to endure a tear down, giving up a current contributor and future talent — either prospects or draft choices — may not be the way for Sweeney to give his team the best chance to win.
Trocheck has had some success in the postseason before, but he is 32 years old and the question of whether he can sustain top-level performances at this point in his career has to be considered.
The belief here is that Trocheck is not that much better than the talent the Bruins already have, so going after the Rangers center would not be beneficial either this season or for the long run.
