The Boston Bruins are being linked with landing one of the top free agent defensemen this summer. Acquiring a quality right-handed blueliner has been general manager Don Sweeney’s top priority for months. After previously missing out on Rasmus Andersson in January, the Bruins exec opted against making a major move for a similar player at the March 6 trade deadline.
While Andersson is seemingly set to become a free agent, he is still likely to re-sign with the Vegas Golden Knights. Assuming this does happen, the Bruins will have to move on from their top target. Daily Faceoff’s Matt Larkin believes that veteran Jacob Trouba would be the next best option for Boston. Trouba is an unrestricted free agent after finishing his seven-year, $56 million contract ($8 million AAV) with the Anaheim Ducks.
The former Ranger is coming off a solid rebound season in Southern California. Trouba recorded 35 points in 81 games, as the veteran helped lead Anaheim to the Stanley Cup playoffs. This particular point total was the defenseman’s best for a campaign since the 2021-22 season. Despite being 32 now, he remains a reliable blueliner on the ice. He has also played at least 69 regular-season games in each of the last seven full-length NHL campaigns.
This is not the first time that Trouba has been linked with the Bruins. Boston was previously named a top landing spot for the veteran before this past season officially ended. The Black n Gold Hockey podcast also recently urged their beloved team to target the defenseman.
Boston Bruins Can Afford Jacob Trouba Before Shedding Salary
GettyFormer Anaheim Ducks star Jacob Trouba would bring leadership, physicality to the Boston Bruins.
The Athletic’s Chris Johnston recently ranked Trouba as the sixth-best unrestricted free agent this summer. This was, however, before top-ranked Alex Tuch landed with the Washington Capitals. The aforementioned Andersson was also placed above the former Ducks star on the list, even though he is heavily linked with a return to Vegas.
According to Johnston, Trouba should fetch a four-year, $25.6 million contract ($6.4 million AAV) in the coming weeks. At the moment, the Boston Bruins have just under $8 million in projected cap space, as reported by Puckpedia.com. Nevertheless, Sweeney and Co. are expected to offload a player or two this summer. Fellow defenseman Mason Lohrei is among multiple players made available by Boston.
Heading into the offseason, Trouba may not have been the top defensive choice by the Bruins. Along with Andersson, Boston was also linked to a reunion with Brandon Carlo before he was shipped off to the St. Louis Blues. However, the soon-to-be former Duck is likely the best available option now for Sweeney and the Bruins.
Boston is Running Out of Right-Shot Blueliners to Target
Assuming the Boston Bruins do land Trouba, the move would go against Sweeney’s preferred age range for his targets. It was previously revealed that the Bruins exec wanted to bring in players aged 30 or under this summer. This age bracket would align with Boston’s core group of Jeremy Swayman (27), Charlie McAvoy (28), and David Pastrnak (30).
Despite this, Trouba is only two years above 30 and is still a quality, reliable defenseman. The Bruins are also seemingly running out of options. John Klingberg is Johnston’s next best right-handed blueliner (ranked 13th). The former Shark, however, is a year older than Trouba and has admitted to enduring an “up-and-down” year in San Jose.
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