As rumors swirl that the Boston Bruins are likely to be making a big trade for a forward, Mark Scheifele’s name has been linked to the team. The Winnipeg Jets are uncertain about his future with the club, and if there’s a chance he won’t re-sign with the organization, a trade makes sense. Thus, the Bruins and Jets are closely connected as potential trade partners. Still, a deal hasn’t happened yet.
Part of that could be that the Jets are hoping Scheifele will change his mind and see him more as a trade deadline deal if he’s dealt at all. The other part of this could be that the Bruins aren’t making Scheifele a priority, instead setting their sights on another team and another forward first.
As per Scott Billeck of the Winnipeg Sun, the Bruins like the idea of Mark Scheifele, but they might like the idea of Elias Lindholm better. Billeck writes:
While moving on from Scheifele, who was attached at the hip with Wheeler for much of their time together in Winnipeg, still seems likely, it may have to wait as well. It’s possible Boston could enter the picture at some point. They likely have their eyes focused on what Elias Lindholm decides in Calgary first.
If this report is accurate, the Bruins might be waiting on the Calgary Flames to see how talks between that team and Lindholm shake out. They are hoping Lindholm wants to stick around, but he too isn’t committing to the team beyond this coming season.
A pending UFA at the end of the 2023-24 campaign, speculation is that the Flames have offered him more than $9M per season, but he’s yet to accept. He wants to know if the Flames are rebuilding, going to be competitive, or perhaps, what his odds of signing a massive contract in free agency look like. Calgary may not be comfortable riding out the season with such uncertainty and elect to trade him if they can’t get a straight answer.
Everyone might be waiting for awhile
If Lindholm wants to know if Calgary will be better, and Scheifele wants to know if the Jets will be improved before committing, that makes it tough for the Bruins, which want to wait on Lindholm before chasing Scheifele.
It sounds like the Flames are the ones who have to make the first move in this chess game. If they elect to see what kind of a return they could get from the Bruins for Lindholm, that could get the ball rolling. If the trade package is high-end, they might pull the trigger.
Intriguing about all of this is that the Flames don’t necessarily need a goaltender and the Bruins’ best trade chip is one of Linus Ullmark or Jeremy Swayman.
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