A big move was expected in Boston before the NHL’s trade deadline on Monday. Bruins GM Don Sweeney delivered late Saturday afternoon he landed Anaheim Ducks defenseman Hampus Lindholm.
The 28-year-old left-shooting native of Sweden was the sixth selection in the 2012 NHL Draft by Anaheim. He’s a 6-foot-4, 216-pound versatile, mobile two-way player who can play high minutes in different situations. He has five goals and 22 points in 61 games before the Ducks held him out of their game Friday against the Florida Panthers. His career high of 13 goals and 31 points in 69 games in 2017-18 complemented his reputation as a sound positional player and shot-blocker.
True to past patterns, Sweeney — who surrendered a first-round pick to Anaheim as part of the package — moved ahead of the typical frenzy that happens on the final day in getting one of his prime trade targets. The Bruins are 11-2-1 in their last 14 games, surging to within two points of the third-place Toronto Maple Leafs on the strength of a 38-19-5 record overall.
If the club has any chance of being able to compete with the top two Atlantic Division teams — Florida and Tampa Bay — Sweeney knew he needed to strengthen his own roster. With Tuukka Rask's retirement, and the Patrice Bergeron-Brad Marchand duo getting longer in the tooth, this Bruins team has been playing well enough that the GM realized he needed to find a way to improve the team. The clock is ticking on Boston's dwindling championship core. Sweeney likely felt pressure to act, and as long as the team can keep Lindholm long term, the assets he gave up won't break the bank.
Adding urgency was that both the Panthers and Lightning made preemptive deals. Florida acquired defenseman Ben Chiarot from Montreal and Flyers captain Claude Giroux on Saturday. Tampa picked up 21-goal forward Brandon Hagel from Chicago, while surrendering a couple of first-rounders and prospects to add to an already stacked forward lineup.
Lindholm is an important first step, but Sweeney may not be done.
Pre-deadline needs
The B’s biggest shortcoming has been on defense, particularly on the left side. Since losing an aging Zdeno Chara to free agency in 2020, the left part of Boston’s defense corps has been addressed through a committee approach, with Mike Reilly and Derek Forbort added in. However, neither player is a viable option for the top pair, which is strong on the right side with Charlie McAvoy’s continued emergence as one of the best young two-way defenders in the NHL. Lindholm gives Boston that stable, higher-end presence to play with their 24-year-old thoroughbred out of Boston University.
With Lindholm in the fold, there is room for another depth/insurance add on the Boston backline as a hedge against the injury bug.
At forward, Â the team's most pressing need is at center. Erik Haula was trending up in the past few months, but has struggled in a recent six-game stretch. Centers aren't easy to come by, but finding a serviceable, versatile veteran to upgrade the middle is the next priority for Sweeney.
Left wing Jake DeBrusk requested a trade months ago, and although his play since February has trended in the right direction, he is Boston’s best roster bargaining chip. The veteran has declined to comment further on his original position, but it is believed he still wants out. To his credit, he’s done his part to boost his value: His 15 goals bring back to his previous production levels, and he should garner interest at the deadline as a cost-controlled pending restricted free agent who is young enough (25) to get his career and scoring back on track. Boston doesn’t have to trade DeBrusk at the deadline, either.
If Sweeney doesn’t get the kind of value he wants, the B’s are probably better off holding on to DeBrusk for the playoffs and then trying to accommodate him in the offseason. However, it’s probably the right call to move him now if possible and give the winger a change of scenery while improving the roster in the process.
Hampus Lindholm: Instant impact, pending UFA
The good news for Boston fans is that Lindholm was one of the best options available. While not quite as intriguing as Arizona’s Jakob Chychrun, who is younger (soon to be 24), signed through 2025, and has a higher offensive upside, the cost the Coyotes were going to extract for their most marketable trade piece might have gotten out of Boston’s reach, especially with the Los Angeles Kings rumored to be in the running.
In Lindholm, the B’s get a veteran of more than 500 NHL games, who has the big body, skating, brain and defensive acumen to stabilize a critical part of Boston’s roster. He’s in his prime and ready to step into the lineup as a reliable defender whose play should see an uptick with McAvoy and more of a veteran lineup around him. (He had been paired with 19-year-old Jamie Drysdale in Anaheim.)
On the downside, Lindholm is on the final year of a contract that paid him $31.5 million over six seasons, with a $5.2 million cap hit. Anaheim will retain 50 percent of Lindholm’s remaining salary, leaving the door open for Boston to make at least one more trade before the Monday deadline.
Lindholm can be an unrestricted free agent this summer. According to a source, he was willing to talk to any team that acquires him about signing before the open free agency period, so the belief here is that Sweeney is confident that Lindholm’s services can be retained going forward. His agent just happens to be former B's nemesis Claude Lemieux, which adds some intrigue to the situation, but that shouldn't stop an extension from getting hammered out, possibly before Monday rolls around. TSN reporter Chris Johnston had a report of the two sides closing in on an eight-year agreement:
https://twitter.com/reporterchris/status/1505361665230999556?s=20&t=sdCoXfL5Y2uBey-hakRbGA
Boston also picked up 32-year-old minor league defenseman Kodie Curran as part of the transaction. In 37 games with Anaheim's AHL affiliate, the San Diego Gulls, the Calgary native has a goal and 16 points.
In exchange for both, Boston sent its first-round pick in the July draft, plus second-rounders in 2023 and 2024, along with a pair of defensemen in veteran John Moore and 2017 Boston first-rounder Urho Vaakanainen.
Moore signed a five-year, $13.7 million free agent contract with the Bruins in 2018, but the 31-year-old former first-round pick in 2009 never really fit in here, seeing his role and ice time gradually reduced until he got injured and the B's optioned his $2.75 million cap hit to the AHL for a $1.625 million charge, per the CapFriendly website. Vaakanainen was another struggling prospect with high expectations who had not been able to establish himself in the NHL after various call-ups. He appeared to be turning the corner this year before injuries derailed his progress.
Outlook: Sweeney has never been shy about dealing away first-round picks, with him giving up three of his top picks in the last five drafts at the trade deadline, two of which have gone to the Ducks. On paper, the trade is a strong one for Boston if it can extend Lindholm. Three picks and two players who weren’t even in the picture might be a lot of pieces, but the B’s did not give up much of substance for one of the best players on the market.
The team filled a key need, and the GM retains enough cap and asset flexibility to shore up the offense, now that the most pressing order of business is taken care of.
