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Boston Bruins forward Phil Kessel must’ve gone into this year’s Labor Day weekend believing his days with the Bruins are numbered.
Trade rumors have dogged Kessel for the past two years, most generated by the local press which -while acknowledging his offensive talent - have issues with his defensive skills, overlooking the fact Kessel is only 21 and most young offensive talents like him tend to improve their all-round play over time.
This summer however the rumors have more than a kernel of truth, as the Bruins nearly had a deal in place which would’ve shipped Kessel to Toronto for defenseman Tomas Kaberle at this year’s draft until it fell apart over which draft picks would be included in the swap.
Intensifying the situation is Kessel’s contract status. Presently he’s an unsigned restricted free agent, believed seeking over $4 million per season, which the Bruins, currently sitting with $1.7 million in available salary cap space, cannot afford.
The Bruins aren’t in a rush to re-sign Kessel as he’s not expected to return from off-season shoulder surgery until sometime in November, giving them an extra couple of months to either work out a new contract (which would mean moving other players to free up cap space) or peddling Kessel to a club willing to pay his contract price.
But there is a time limit for the Bruins, for if Kessel isn’t re-signed by December 1st he’ll become ineligible for play this season.
Kessel recently suggested his situation could be rectified one way or the other prior to October 1st, which is opening night for the NHL’s 2009-10 season.
Speculation has increased over the past two weeks as reports in the Boston media cited sources claiming teams have expressed interest in Kessel.
The San Jose Sharks, New York Rangers, Vancouver Canucks and the Maple Leafs have been considered potential trade partners. The recent acquisition by Leafs general manager Brian Burke of his 2010 second round draft pick from the Chicago Blackhawks gives him, as noted this weekend by TSN’s Bob McKenzie, the required compensation of a first, second and third round picks he’d require to give the Bruins were he to successfully sign away Kessel with an offer sheet.
Whether or not that’s Burke’s intent remains to be seen, but with training camps set to open mid-month and the start of the season over three weeks away (as of this writing) it’s possible Kessel’s contract status could come to a head very soon.
Toronto is the only team that could pull the trigger on an offer sheet right now. They have the space and picks. Vancouver has to shed salary, taking on another $4M contract accomplishes the opposite, the Rangers still have to sign Dubinsky and make decisions on a couple other positions; San Jose lacks the equivalent in trade material. If there's a delusion that Chiarelli has time on his side, he might want to check the clock again.
chaasIn a semirelated topic, I've been impressed by the way Burke assembled his team in Toronto. Given the big and mean approach that worked in Anaheim, looking down the Toronto roster of today makes me think there's a very good chance they'll be back to the playoffs in no time.
In contrast, I'm quite unimpressed by Glen Sather's moves once again. For a couple seasons he was doing so well, building from within and adding veteran leadership where needed. But we're back to the spend spend spend ways of the pre-lockout age. Unless Redden and Gaborik have career years, the most positive mark he'll leave on the franchise is rescuing the most hated player in the NHL from exile.
04:34 AM EST