Report: Oliver Ekman-Larsson trade ‘looking unlikely’ for Bruins
By Ty Anderson, 985TheSportsHub.com
A trade for the Coyotes’ Oliver Ekman-Larsson is suddenly ‘looking unlikely’ for Don Sweeney and the Bruins, according to the latest report from Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman.
“As of [Tuesday] afternoon, it just looked unlikely for Boston,” Friedman reported late Tuesday night. “That could change, but I just heard as of this afternoon, it looked unlikely for Boston. That made Vancouver appear like the more likely destination. I think the Canucks want to do it, but it’s a challenge.”
(Friedman did make it a point to mention that he’s always scared to speak definitively, as things can change.)
In complete control of his situation with a full no-movement clause, Ekman-Larsson has refused to budge on expanding his list beyond Vancouver and Boston, and has set a Friday deadline for the sides to make a trade for him. It was also reported earlier in the week that the Coyotes like the B’s prospects more, too, but that Vancouver was the more eager trade partner.
One undeniable problem in these trade talks is the 29-year-old defender’s monstrous contract, which comes with an $8.25 million cap hit for the next seven years. It’s believed that the Coyotes are going to have to either retain salary in a trade, or absorb a team’s bad contract. Now, the Bruins aren’t exactly loaded with your prototypical bad contract (John Moore’s $2.75 million for the next three years is their worst one), and the B’s probably aren’t overly enamored with the idea of trading their 2021 first-round pick considering they ditched their 2020 first to move David Backes to Anaheim in exchange for Ondrej Kase. That obviously hurts your case when you’re trying to get a team to absorb salary for the next seven seasons.
You just wonder if there’s enough to close the negotiating gap between the B’s and ‘Yotes by OEL’s deadline.
Whether or not that’s the reasoning for the shift to ‘unlikely’ when it comes to bringing Arizona’s captain to Boston is unknown, and Sweeney was mum when Ekman-Larsson came up after the first round of the 2020 NHL Draft on Tuesday night.
“I’m reading a lot about it,” Sweeney said. “I certainly can’t comment on any other player on any other team. Conversations were had and I’ve made it pretty clear that I’m not going to talk about any players that may be discussed on our own team. It’s our jobs as general managers to make sure that we’re aware of who is available and try to have those types of conversations that might benefit your own club and that’s what the other teams are doing.”
Ekman-Larsson had nine goals and 30 points in 66 games this past season, and has totaled 125 goals and 364 points in 723 career games with the Coyotes since 2010.
Listen to Ty Anderson and Matt Dolloff break down the Bruins’ trade rumors and draft picks on the newest episode of the Sports Hub Sidelines podcast:
Ty Anderson is a writer and columnist for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Yell at him on Twitter: @_TyAnderson.
