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The Sadowski Report |
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December 3, 2005, 7:38 AM ET
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Maybe the Boston Bruins won't regret trading captain Joe Thornton.
Maybe the three players they acquired from the
San Jose Sharks in exchange for the three-time NHL All-Star will propel
them beyond the first round of the playoffs for the first time since
1998-99.
But, to an outsider in Colorado,the
blockbuster deal that brought forwards Wayne Primeau and Marco Sturm,
along with defenseman Brad Stuart, to Beantown appears to be a panic
move by the Bruins.
Yes, both teams have been major disappointments this
season, but Thornton is easily the best player of the four involved in
the trade, so it sure looks like San Jose got the better of the deal to
me.Sturm and Stuart are good players and Primeau is a third-liner
at best,so it's hard to figure how this trio will make enough of
a difference for the Bruins to turn things around.
Thornton, who is 6-feet-4 and 220 pounds, will
combine with Patrick Marleau (6-2, 220) to give the Sharks what should
be a potent 1-2 scoring punch at center, possibly as good as any in the
NHL.
Just what we needed out West: another elite center.
Thornton is in the first year of a three-year
contract that pays him $6.67 million per year - more than the combined
salaries of Stuart ($2.15 million), Sturm ($2.05 million) and Primeau
($1.125 million).
The Sharks could afford to take on the extra money
because their payroll is just over $30 million, well below the $39
million salary cap. The Bruins now have about $1.3 million more to play
with, so the potential is there for them to make another deal.
This much is certain: if the trade doesn't pan out
for the Bruins, general manager Mike O'Connell and coach Steve Sullivan
will be the next to go.
