The Boston Bruins Are Just Doing Whatever The Hell They Want

New Bruins general manager Don Sweeney definitely got aggressive with some moves before tonight’s NHL draft. The end goal of those actions is still unclear, though.

Defenseman Dougie Hamilton will be a restricted free agent on July 1, and instead of negotiating, Sweeney shipped the 22-year-old to the Flames for the 15th, 45th, and 52nd overall picks. Sweeney said this about Hamilton yesterday, via the Boston Globe:

“We’ve presented opportunities on both ends of it,” Sweeney said. “Again, we’ll find the right deal.”

Sweeney said the sides would meet “as much as we have to to continue to go forward. Dougie’s a real important part of our organization and I’ve made no bones about the fact that I want him to be a part of that and we’re going to explore every opportunity to do that.”

Hamilton reportedly wanted a new deal around $5 million per season, and the Bruins didn’t want to pay that much, so they sold while they still could. Hamilton’s asking price wasn’t unreasonable considering his age and talent, however, and not meeting it means the Bruins have a bunch of middle-round picks and a rapidly aging Zdeno Chara. That’s not even the weirdest part:

In other transactions, the team traded center Carl Soderberg to the Avalanche Thursday, and defenseman Adam McQuaid got a four-year contract today. Oh, and Milan Lucic got traded to the Kings for a backup goalie Martin Jones, a pick, and AHL defenseman Colin Miller:

That’s a lot to process. Lucic, for one, already seems delighted to be out of Boston:

Photo: AP

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