Could Bruins trade Smith to their top competitor in the Eastern Conference? originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
All of the latest reporting points to the Boston Bruins being the front-runners to acquire Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov before the March 3 NHL trade deadline.
In fact, David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period reported Tuesday that the Bruins and Blue Jackets have the “framework” of a deal in place for Gavrikov, but the B’s need to clear some salary cap space for the trade to happen. He also reported that Craig Smith is a player the Bruins have been shopping.
That makes sense, considering Smith has an expiring contract with a somewhat manageable $3.1 million salary cap hit.
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Where could the Bruins trade the veteran forward?
Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman posted his latest 32 Thoughts column Wednesday morning, and he mentioned a pretty interesting potential trade partner for the Bruins in regards to Smith.
“I believe (the Hurricanes have) spoken to the Bruins about Smith, as Boston might incentivize Carolina to do it,” Friedman wrote.
You might be wondering: Why would the Hurricanes, who are battling the Bruins for the top seed in the Eastern Conference and home ice advantage throughout the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs, help one of their main competitors open up cap space to make a trade?
It’s a valid question. These teams could meet in the Eastern Conference Final.
Maybe the Hurricanes’ thinking, and this is purely speculation on my part, is that some team out there will eventually take Smith’s contract and get an asset (draft pick or prospect) for his troubles. If that’s the case, the ‘Canes might want to be that team and get the asset for themselves. Carolina currently has about $10.1 million in cap space, per CapFriendly, so they can easily absorb Smith’s contract and still make a meaningful upgrade for their own roster before the trade deadline.
Trading Smith to the Hurricanes does carry some risk for the Bruins, though.
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He has underperformed this season with just 10 points (four goals, six assists) in 42 games, but in the right role he could still be effective. Smith is a five-time 20-goal scorer with plenty of playoff experience. He’s also playing for a new contract, so he has all the motivation a player could need.
Giving the Hurricanes a potentially useful bottom-six forward, plus another asset they could use to make a trade deadline upgrade, just isn’t worth it for the Bruins.
They should find another trade partner for Smith, even if it costs a little more to dump his contract. Making the Hurricanes — who are already a really tough matchup for the B’s — even stronger is a dangerous idea.