The Boston Bruins were a Stanley Cup favorite before the pause due to COVID-19. They had some struggles in the bubble and eventually were eliminated in the second round by the Tampa Bay Lightning.

It’s not often that you see a trade between clubs in the same division, but the Bruins do have a few players that could be interesting targets. They’re in a decent cap situation this offseason, however, they have a few big-name players that need contracts. That’s where things get interesting in Boston.

Bruins Offseason Outlook

2020-21 Projected Cap Space (via Cap Friendly): $14.43 million

Key Restricted Free Agents: Jake DeBrusk, Matt Grzelcyk (arbitration-eligible), and Jakub Zboril

Key Unrestricted Free Agents: Zdeno Chara, Torey Krug, and Joakim Nordstrom

1. Matt Grzelcyk | LD | Age 26 | RFA (arbitration-eligible)

The Sabres are in need of some help on the left side of their defense and Grzelcyk would be perfect to fill that need. My understanding is he’s another player that Kevyn Adam has expressed interest in this offseason. Grzelcyk actually played with Jack Eichel at Boston University during the 2014-15 season.

The 26-year-old defender is an underrated player. He’s a solid second pair two-way defender. You can see his impacts this past season in Micah McCurdy’s chart below.

Grzelcyk is coming off perhaps his best season in the NHL in both production and on-ice impact. This past season he ranked 10th among all defenders in even-strength defense and 44th in expected goals above replacement in Evolving Hockey’s model.

The Bruins have used him in neutral zone deployment throughout his NHL career, according to Natural Stat Trick. Boston has some strong defenders, but you don’t need to have concerns about a quality of teammate issue here with his defense partner that would inflate his impacts. Over the last two years, his most common defense partners have been Kevan Miller and Connor Clifton.

2. Nick Ritchie | LW | Age 24 | One-year, $1.498 million

If you’re a fan that is looking for the Sabres to bring in someone with some edge and can still play, your man is Nick Ritchie. He’s a bottom-six forward that can be a productive player and is responsible defensively. All while bringing a physical presence to his club.

The catch here with the 24-year-old that you can see in Micah’s chart above is that you have to be prepared to deal with the penalties. According to Evolving Hockey, Ritchie took the 20th most penalties per 60 minutes last season.

He took some bad penalties for the Bruins in the playoffs. If they’re tired of the act the Sabres should consider looking into the cost to acquire him. Boston picked him up in exchange for Danton Heinen at the deadline. I’d imagine they’d look for a player back in return if he’s made available.

3. Jake DeBrusk | LW | Age 23 | RFA

This is another long-shot mention of a player. DeBrusk is a scoring winger that is on a strong trend towards being an impact player.

He could be available in the right trade if the two sides have some issues during contract negotiations. It would likely be a situation where the Bruins would ask for a player like Sam Reinhart in return. That’s a trade that wouldn’t help improve the Sabres and be a lateral move at best.

DeBrusk is a non-arbitration eligible restricted free agent. So, at the end of the day, I expect him to agree to a new deal with the Bruins. His only recourse in negotiations is to hold out.

Data via: Hockeyviz.com, Natural Stat Trick, and Evolving Hockey

Photo Credit: Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports