The Bruins will soon have to sacrifice a player and this may explain a lot about Patrice Bergeron

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Jeff Drouin
August 3, 2022 (8:48 PM)

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Boston Bruins fans are still waiting for Patrice Bergeron's decision on whether he will return to the team for the upcoming season. There is also the suspense surrounding David Krejci as he considers a return to the NHL and may be tempted to rejoin the Bruins as there will be a new head coach in town.

The problem here is that Boston is almost out of money already. According to Capfriendly, they have about $4.8 million in salary cap space, which has prompted Kevin Paul Dupont of the Boston Globe to wonder if the Bruins will be forced to make a trade in order to have money to sign Bergeron, Krejci and also newcomer Pavel Zacha.

Of course, the Bruins will get some relief when Brad Marchand and Charlie McAvoy start the season on the long-term injured list. General Manager Don Sweeney will have to clear some salary once these players return to the lineup, however.

Dupont believes the Bruins could sacrifice Craig Smith and place him on the trade market for more cap space. Smith has an annual salary of $3.1M for the upcoming season and becomes an unrestricted free agent next summer.

Smith would certainly draw interest from rival teams as he is a former 20+ goal scorer (on four occasions) who scored 16 goals and 36 points last season. A deal could also be made much easier as Smith does not have a no-trade clause and could be of interest to clubs looking for an experienced winger.

The problem with these types of trades is that Boston will likely have to include a draft pick or prospect in the deal to make it easier, as NHL teams are well aware that the Bruins need space to add Bergeron and Krejci to their roster.

While Smith is an interesting option for the Bruins, rumors have also brought up Matt Grzelcyk's name as a candidate on the trade market. He is signed through 2023-2024 with an average salary of $3.67 million.

One thing is certain, the Bruins will have to sacrifice a player to sign Patrice Bergeron, David Krejci and Pavel Zacha to contracts. That might explain why Bergeron's decision is still pending, by the way.