Ryan Kennedy Of 'The Hockey News': 'Tricky Balancing Act' For Bruins And Loui Eriksson At Trade Deadline
BOSTON (CBS) -- The NHL Trade Deadline is rapidly approaching, and with Andrew Ladd shipped to the Chicago Blackhawks, the Bruins have arguably the best player available for a trade in Loui Eriksson. Despite Cam Neely's assertion that the team is having "ongoing discussions" with Eriksson about a contract extension, there have also been reports that they are far apart in negotiations.
That leaves a trade as the Bruins' only other option, and ideally, they could move Eriksson for a top-four defenseman. Senior writer Ryan Kennedy of The Hockey News joined Toucher & Rich Friday morning to discuss the possibilities.
He said the Bruins' situation is more complicated than it may seem.
"The Bruins are in that weird spot where they are a playoff team and they're playing well lately, but they could lose [Eriksson] for nothing in the summer because he's a pending unrestricted free agent," said Kennedy. "It's a tricky balancing act for GM Don Sweeney."
When asked about the Bruins' need for a defenseman, Kennedy brought up the possibility of trading Eriksson to a team like the Anaheim Ducks, who are in need of scoring and have a wealth of solid defensemen they could hypothetically move, like Sami Vatanen or Hampus Lindholm. However, he also said it's likely they could only get picks and prospects in an Eriksson deal.
Listen to the full podcast below: