NHL Rumors: Boston Bruins and Carolina Hurricanes

Boston Bruins Five Priorities This Offseason

Conor Ryan of Boston.com: Ryan writes the Boston Bruins did the most they could up against the salary cap this past season. General Manager Don Sweeney did the best he could, but there are still areas of need the Bruins must address.

1. Trade Linus Ullarmark – This will be tricky as Ullmark has a 16-team no-trade clause. However, he can get the Bruins what they need regarding cap relief, as Jeremy Swayman is due a pay raise in the summer and a center.
2. Top Six Center – Pavel Zacha and Charlie Coyle did their best, but the Bruins need a top-six center to replace Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci. Players like Elias Lindholm and Martin Necas, and maybe see what happens with Pierre-Luc Dubois in Los Angeles could help in Boston.
3. Re-sign Jeremy Swayman and Jake DeBrusk – The Bruins have to get their number one goalie locked up. He is going to get paid, but they need to leave room to potentially extend a player like DeBrusk who has had a rocky road in Boston.
4. Bolster Depth Scoring – The Bruins just don’t have the goal-scoring to match other teams in the division and conference anymore. They have $26 million to play with before re-signing Swayman and maybe DeBrusk. But players like Tyler Toffoli, Jonathan Marchessault, and Tyler Bertuzzi could help that problem.
5. Add Size on the Blueline – The Bruins need to add size on the backend. Brenden Dillon and Joel Edmundson fit what the Bruins need on the left side in the bottom pairing.

Will Martin Necas Stay with the Carolina Hurricanes?

Chip Alexander of Raleigh News and Observer: Alexander writes that Martin Necas remains the subject of trade talks and speculation out of Carolina dating back to the NHL Trade Deadline.

Necas is a restricted free agent with arbitration rights. He is a top-six forward looking for a pay raise this summer. Current Hurricanes GM Don Waddell wants to try to figure something out with Necas.

According to those who know him, Necas wants to play center, but head coach Rod Brind’Amour has not used him in that position. So the question is, do the Canes think he can play the position, and what is his value to them?