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Possible Bruins trades coming after break?

A good blog post on the Stanley Cup of Chowder site has an interview that Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli did on the radio and it sounds like he may have a trade or two lined up to make once the NHL gets back into action on Monday. Make sure to check out their blog post (link below).

"Tuesday things started to pick up and I suspect you'll see some deals that have already been cooked. You'll see them done like the morning of the first. We're in on a couple and I like our chances... I always want improve this team...We have identified a couple areas where we feel we can improve it right now and if the right deal is there (and I think we are in on a couple that are close) that we will do them."
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The post also mentions that there were rumors of Bruins acquiring Nashville Predators defenseman Dan Hamhuis. I'm guessing here but maybe a Dennis Wideman for Hamhuis trade is in the works? I still think Chiarelli is trying to get St. Louis Blues forward Keith Tkachuk in a trade. We'll wait and see what happens next week.

Bruins are hot before Olympic break

It's now the Olympic break for all NHL teams. The Bruins have won their last four games after that long losing streak. As of right now the Bruins have 65 points with a 27-22-11 record. That puts them in third place in the Northeast Division, behind the Senators and Sabres. But in the Eastern Conference, the Bruins are in seventh place in the playoff race, which would be a playoff spot but lots of teams are close in points to each other so anything can happen.

The Bruins next game is on Tuesday, March 2nd at home against the Montreal Canadiens. Then on Thursday, March 4th the Bruins face the Toronto Maple Leafs at home. After the game against Toronto, the Bruins go on a seven game road trip (vs the Islanders, Penguins, Maple Leafs, Flyers, Canadiens, Devils, and Hurricanes).

Bruins beat Habs, end losing streak

The Bruins ended their 10-game losing streak yesterday by beating the Montreal Canadiens 3-0. The Bruins dominated the first period, then in the second Montreal put the pressure on but Tuukka Rask was solid in net. In the third it was more back and forth by both teams but the Bruins held on for the win. This game also saw Blake Wheeler get into his first NHL fight, as he took on purse snatcher Ryan O'Byrne. It wasn't much of a fight as Wheeler lost his balance but was the only one to actually throw any punches. It was good to see Wheeler to stick up for himself after O'Byrne rammed his head against the glass.

David Krejci left in the first period and did not return to the game.

After the game, coach Claude Julien said that the injury wasn't serious and Krejci could be available for Boston's next game Tuesday night in Buffalo. Julien also said he would know more Monday.
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Other injury news, defenseman Johnny Boychuk will not need surgery for his fractured orbital bone that he got on Saturday when he took a Mikael Samuelsson shot up high. He will be out for 7-10 days, so he won't be playing until after the Olympic break.

The Bruins next game is on Tuesday at the Buffalo Sabres. Then the Bruins go to Florida to take on the Lightning on Thursday and then the Panthers on Saturday.

Possible trade and Chara injured finger

NESN is reporting that the Bruins are interested in trading for St. Louis Blues forward Keith Tkachuk. It seems they almost acquired him last season but it didn't fall through.

According to the source, Tkachuk was ecstatic at the thought of coming to Boston last March and would still love to play for his hometown team if the opportunity arose again. Tkachuk, who went to Boston University, has twelve goals and 16 assists this season. He has cracked the 50 goal plateau twice in his career and has 537 career goals and 1,061 points.
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The St. Louis Blues may be looking for a high draft pick though for Tkachuk and I don't think he's worth a first round pick. Tkachuk has definitely not produced as he did back in the 90s, but I think he would be a good fit with Marc Savard.

There's also news that Bruins captain Zdeno Chara has been playing with a dislocated left pinkie finger for nine weeks, and will probably need surgery after the season.

Chara just recently stopped wearing a splint that limited his ability to hold the stick with his left hand. The finger is still off line, especially when he closes his hand, and discolored. Without the splint, he keeps the pinkie taped to his ring finger.

The injury occurred Nov. 20 in a win at Buffalo. Chara was hit from behind, and his hand got knocked into his quad and into the boards. He actually played through it before getting the splint on. An MRI revealed "it was all torn up," he said.
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