Taylor Hall Is NO LONGER A Boston Bruin
Maddie Meyer. Getty Images.Oh man…. about an hour ago Elliotte Friedman tweeted that Boston and Chicago were working on something that could "ease the Bruins' cap situation" and we now know the full deal includes Taylor Hall heading to the Blackhawks. It was going to be an interesting summer after a PAINFUL postseason simply because the Bruins are so fucked cap wise, with just a little over 4 million in space with what feels like 8 million guys to sign. Something was going to have to budge, and I believe they really want to keep Tyler Bertuzzi. Unfortunately Taylor Hall to Chicago is the end result, clearing $6 million in space to give Don Sweeney some breathing room to work with. Pending UFA Nick Foligno is heading to the Blackhawks in the deal as well.
But my god does this one hurt though. Purely a cap move like I said. Played really well in the playoffs despite playing on like half of a knee. Spoke highly of the city, the locker room and his team every chance he had. Ultimately fell to the third line and with the Bruins strapped for cash this summer he was the casualty. Talked to Chief about the deal and he's higher on Ian Mitchell than Alec Regula… (&& Jim Montgomery coached Ian Mitchell at Denver as well) but again, this is strictly for Boston to alleviate some cap pressure. I'd feel a hell of a lot better if a Bertuzzi extension was coming any second. We knew Sweeney was going to have to get creative to create some room and this is just the beginning of what I believe will be a flurry of moves.
Two big RFA's in Jeremy Swayman and Trent Frederic who need deals. The futures of David Krejci and Patrice Bergeron are up in the air. We'll see where Don Sweeney goes now, but my eyes immediately go to extending Tyler Bertuzzi right this second before he hits the market on Saturday. He had one hell of a playoff despite the outcome and seemed to fit seamlessly in Boston. A big thank you to Taylor Hall for his service, and all the best to him in Chicago.
Buckle up, Bruins fans.