Bruins Testing Trade Waters on Pavel Zacha — Something Bigger Coming?

The Boston Bruins are willing to listen to trade offers for Pavel Zacha, but don’t mistake that for a team eager to move on from one of their top forwards.

According to Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic, Boston’s preference this summer is to extend Zacha, not trade him — but how aggressively teams come calling and what offers they put on the table could change the way the Bruins approach things.

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LeBrun writes:

“My understanding is that the Bruins’ top priority this summer is to extend Zacha if possible. That can happen as of July 1. He’s got one year left on his deal at a $4.75 million AAV and obviously will be looking for a raise after posting career bests with 30 goals and 65 points this past season. But how those talks go will be balanced with whether teams step up in a real way in trade talks.”

Zacha just became a much bigger fish in a relatively smaller pond. This is one of the weaker classes for UFAs as far as centers go, and not many teams are willing to give up productive players. It’s understandable the Bruins don’t want to move him. At the same time, the offers will be there if the Bruins are open to hearing teams out and the contract he could command with another big season is worth thinking about.

A 30-goal, 65-point center in his prime is exactly what teams around the league are hunting for, and LeBrun reports that several have already made calls to Boston in recent weeks. “So many teams are looking to upgrade at center, and some of them have called over the past week or so,” LeBrun noted.

Zacha Controls Some Of This Trade Speculation

Zacha also has some control over his own fate. He carries an eight-team no-trade list and LeBrun reports he submitted that list to the Bruins on April 1 — meaning Boston already knows where he will and won’t go if a deal does get done.

This could be one of the more compelling storylines of the summer in Boston. A center-starved market combined with a team unafraid to make bold moves means the right offer could turn into a blockbuster deal.

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