FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Amid preparations for the NHL Draft, there are other pieces of business for the Bruins to attend to in Southern Florida this week, including continuing talks regarding their most important signing of the summer: defenseman Dougie Hamilton.
General manager Don Sweeney met with Hamilton’s agent, J.P. Barry, Wednesday night in Florida, but it does not appear the sides are close to an agreement.
Barry said in an e-mail, “We had good discussions on Dougie and his progression and discussed different term options, but I wouldn’t say we are close to finalizing anything yet.”
And it could take a while.
Hamilton is in line for a hefty raise that could end up in the range of $5.5 million-plus, if he signs long term with the Bruins. The talks also could be complicated by an offer sheet from another team.
But at least from what Sweeney said Thursday, the Bruins aren’t going to let even an offer sheet get in the way of keeping the young defenseman.
“We’re going to do whatever we have to do in order to protect the player,” said Sweeney, when asked about the Bruins’ ability to work with an offer sheet given their salary cap situation. “It’s part of the CBA. It’s not going away, so we have to be aware and prepared for it, in case it does come our way.”
Sweeney added that the team has talked with Hamilton’s agent about both long-term and short-term bridge deals, though the latter could put them in line to face the same issue the Montreal Canadiens did with P.K. Subban, yielding Subban’s current deal, which has a $9 million cap hit.
Paying more now for Hamilton’s potential later would seem to be more financially prudent.
“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.”
While getting the deal done before July 1 — when Hamilton becomes a restricted free agent — would happen “in a perfect world,” Sweeney said, the team would continue to have discussions after that point.
Soderberg traded
It was made clear in recent weeks that the Bruins were not going to sign unrestricted free agent Carl Soderberg, but it became official on Thursday when they traded the center’s rights to the Avalanche for a 2016 sixth-round draft pick.
The pick belonged to the Bruins originally, having gone to Colorado in the trade deadline deal that sent Jordan Caron to the Avalanche for Max Talbot and Paul Carey.
Thursday’s trade was consummated on the day the free agent talking period began. Soderberg’s agent was allowed to begin discussions with other clubs in advance of free agency beginning on July 1. ESPN reported on Thursday that Soderberg’s camp is looking for a contract in the range of $5 million per year, far too rich for the Bruins.
Sweeney had foreshadowed the move earlier in the day, saying it was possible that he might trade the rights to a player before July 1.
While the Bruins did get a sixth-round pick for Soderberg’s rights, they could have traded the center sooner. And perhaps they should have.
Given the team’s struggles, the Bruins could have opted to ship Soderberg elsewhere at the trade deadline, when teams were giving big returns for talent. Boston could have gotten at least a first-round pick for Soderberg at that point, or in the months before, though the team was loathe to give up on a season in which it still saw potential.
It would have been a difficult move for then-GM Peter Chiarelli to make, given his tenuous situation, but it would have been a boon in a season in which it seemed clear even then that the Bruins would not make waves in the playoffs — if they even qualified.
Soderberg played this past season on a $1,008,333 contract, and stands to get a significant raise in free agency. This could possibly be his one chance to cash in, as Soderberg will be 30 in October.
The center was acquired by the Bruins from the Blues on July 23, 2007, for goalie Hannu Toivonen. But instead of coming to the NHL immediately, Soderberg spent six more seasons in Sweden before joining the Bruins at the end of the 2012-13 season.
After that, he played two full seasons in Boston, and was at his most effective centering a line with Chris Kelly and Loui Eriksson as his wings.
Soderberg played 161 games for the Bruins with 29 goals and 65 assists.
Interest in McQuaid
The Bruins met briefly with Richard Curran, the agent for Adam McQuaid, on the day the free agent defenseman was able to begin talking to other teams. Curran said he has fielded multiple calls about McQuaid, more than he had expected. Sweeney reiterated that the Bruins would like to fit McQuaid onto the team. Their cap situation, however, makes that tricky . . . Sweeney said he has had discussions with the agents for Ryan Spooner and Brett Connolly, and those talks are ongoing. Both are restricted free agents.