According to the latest NHL trade rumors, the Boston Bruins are looking for scoring help. Should Mark Stone of the Ottawa Senators become available, the Bruins would be “all in”.
The Boston Bruins are desperately looking for scoring help. Despite having the ultra-productive trio of Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron, and David Pastrnak at the top of their lineup, they are among the league’s lowest scoring teams at even strength. According to the latest NHL trade rumors, their top target at the trade deadline is a division rival – Mark Stone of the Ottawa Senators.
This report comes from Larry Brooks of the New York Post. The Bruins are certainly familiar with Stone. They’ve seen the best of him, as the forward has 14 points in 17 career games against Boston. Stone is on pace to shatter his previous career highs in virtually every offensive category.
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Their interest in him is likely tied to the uncertainty surrounding Pastrnak’s injury. At the very least, his injury exposed their desperate need for secondary scoring. Stone should help, as he could boost what has been a fairly pedestrian second forward line.
Additionally, the Bruins probably feel pressure thanks to how great the Tampa Bay Lightning and Toronto Maple Leafs have been. They are teams who can rely on more than one forward line to score goals. That’s more than can be said for the Bruins, though it is worth noting they’ve battled through numerous injuries.
Until Pastrnak returns, one can assume the Bruins would try him out with Bergeron and Marchand. At the very least, it would give them a fascinating trio to turn to in close games. Stone is one of the bes200-foot players in the league and arguably the best one among wings. His underlying possession numbers are off the charts.
A potential barrier for the deal could be the Senators. They’ve recently refused to trade a player to a division rival, which caused them essentially lose Mike Hoffman for nothing. The Sharks traded for him and proceeded to flip him to the Florida Panthers. Would the Senators be willing to move Stone to the Bruins? That’s a really good question. And it’s one which will determine whether this deal happens.
There’s also the issue of the cost. It’s going to be sky high. Any offer for Stone begins with a first-round pick in 2019. Luckily for the Bruins, they have one.
After that, it will likely take at least one highly thought of prospect and an additional young NHL caliber player. This might mean someone like Danton Heinen, Jake DeBrusk, or Ryan Donato.
Of course, the Senators could wind up extending Stone and taking him off the trade market. But unless he puts his John Hancock on a deal from Ottawa, there’s going to be a ton of speculation until the deadline.
For updated NHL trade rumors, check out our Rumors page.