Jake DeBrusk’s agent provides update on client ahead of trade deadline

A boost in production and a successful-to-date move to Boston's top line has not swayed Jake DeBrusk into wanting to stay with the Bruins, according to the latest update from DeBrusk's camp.

"After speaking with DeBrusk’s agent, Rick Valette, there has not been a change of heart," Pierre LeBrun said on the latest edition of TSN's Insider Trading segment Tuesday night. "This means the trade demand is still in place for DeBrusk, to hopefully, in his case, get a trade out of Boston by the March 21 trade deadline."

To date, the Bruins haven't received a trade offer that they consider to be a worthwhile move or equal value for DeBrusk. They've also made it clear that they won't sell him for pennies on the dollar. That value has likely only gone up in the eyes of the Bruins, especially as DeBrusk has surged to the tune of seven goals and nine points over his last six games.

Now, a lack of early-season production and general hot-and-cold play isn't the only reason why teams haven't been lining up outside the Garden to make their pitches for DeBrusk, as DeBrusk's status as a pending restricted free agent potentially due some big money has given some teams some pause.

But, according to LeBrun, the Bruins have given DeBrusk's camp the permission to potentially bypass that qualifying offer dilemma with a potential extension.

"The other thing Valette talked about is that he has informed teams, by the way he has permission to talk directly to other teams, that they’re willing to work on an extension to help facilitate a deal," LeBrun noted. "A lot of teams are concerned about the $4.4 million qualifying offer to retain his rights this summer, maybe [if there’s] an extension at a cheaper price everyone will go home happy. Bottom line is if he keeps scoring and playing a bigger role, it might help the Bruins and general manager Don Sweeney get better offers than they’ve had to date."

The Bruins and DeBrusk's camp have less than three weeks to figure it all out if DeBrusk is going to finish the 2021-22 year in another sweater.

More from 985TheSportsHub.com...

By his own recollection, it's been almost three years since Bruins winger Jake DeBrusk felt this good about his game.

"Obviously when pucks are going in and production’s there, it feels good," DeBrusk admitted Monday night in Los Angeles. "It's one of those things where it's just the game of hockey. You need bounces. Whether it's passes, goals or whatever to find it, but an inch here or inch there it's not in the net or it's in the net, and it kind of makes you giggle, but it's a very rewarding feeling."

And it's been a white-hot five-game run from the 25-year-old wing that's flipped everything on its head for the Bruins.

When the Bruins last tasted defeat, DeBrusk skated off the UBS Arena ice with just over 11 minutes of time on ice (second-lowest to only Anton Blidh) and in a tie for the 226th-most goals (seven) in the NHL in 2021-22. Maybe they weren't kidding when they said the Kraken's Mason Appleton was the best that the Bruins could fetch for the trade-me-right-effin'-now DeBrusk. But now, with seven goals over the course of the B's five-game winning streak, and a promotion to the top line with Brad Marchand and Patrice Bergeron along the way, DeBrusk has elevated himself up to a tie for the 103rd-most goals in the league. At this rate, he'll be in the top 50 by the 2022 NHL trade deadline. And, huh, ain't that something.

Speaking with the reporters last week for the first time since his request went public back in November, DeBrusk basically said that his desire for a fresh start is still there without outright saying it. The Bruins, meanwhile, have held firm on the idea that it's gonna be best, not first, trade available when it comes to moving DeBrusk.

But what if there's not a trade that makes it worth the Bruins parting with DeBrusk, a player who has shown an ability to mesh with Bergeron and Marchand, and is finally looking and playing the player the Bruins (and DeBrusk himself) have waited to return to form? Because this version of No. 74 is awfully valuable to the Bruins.

“He’s working above pucks, trying to play the right way, so [I’m] happy for him," Bruins head coach Bruce Cassidy said after Monday's win. "It’s made us a more dangerous lineup, obviously, when he’s going and contributing on that line."

Together for over 28 minutes of five-on-five play this season, the Marchand-Bergeron-DeBrusk line has now outshot opponents by a downright ridiculous 30-6 mark and outscored ‘em 2-0. They've generated 21 scoring chances, and nine of the high-danger variety, and let up almost nothing at the other end in terms of chances over that six-shot sample. One thing that the Bruins have clearly loved about DeBrusk's potential long-term fit with Marchand and Bergeron has been his ability to use his speed to get in on the forecheck, and how DeBrusk can retrieve pucks when it's a player as cerebral as Bergeron dumping them into the corners. The Bruins also believe DeBrusk's found the advantages of puck retrieval while playing his off wing.

With a player like DeBrusk, that makes a gigantic difference on the ice and between the ears, and the numbers confirm it.

"It's all there for him: ability to finish, sees the ice, foot speed to beat guys," Cassidy said of DeBrusk's ceiling as a consistent player. "When he's on puck [on the] forecheck, he's very dangerous. If he can consistently be strong on pucks on the walls... that's an area that almost all young guys go through, and that takes almost years to get through. I don't wanna say what he'd end up [as], but that's a pretty valuable player there that can play in all situations."

Now, to be clear, the argument is whether or not you're 'buying in' on DeBrusk being this player for the remainder of his career. That's way too far of an outlook for a team led by a 36-year-old top-line center and on a planet that's teetering just a biiiiiit too close to an all-out global conflict for anybody to feel comfortable. But is this version of DeBrusk still a piece you can afford to move for anything less than a legit, bonafide, no-doubt upgrade by the deadline? Given the Bruins' needs (and they have more than one of 'em, which is an important thing to remember), that's an interesting discussion.

And would this version of DeBrusk still want a move out of town ASAP? The Edmonton native has refused to state why he wants out of Boston, and his agent hasn't spilled the beans either. But it's no secret that DeBrusk's relationship with Cassidy has been a rocky one over the last two years, and that he probably doesn't want to view himself as someone with the ceiling of a third-line player at 25, which is what he'd be at his natural position behind Marchand and Taylor Hall. Well, what if he's logging top-line minutes — even if it's on his off wing — and continuing to build (repair?) his trust with Cassidy?

The Bruins and DeBrusk have another three weeks to figure that all out.

But right now, nobody's complaining when everyone's winning and the production is there.

“I sure like it when things are going like this,” admitted DeBrusk.

Here are some other thoughts and notes from a 7-0 win over the Kings...

Ottawa's Brady Tkachuk will tell you straight-up that nobody likes Brendan Lemieux.

Weird little milestone combo in this game: When a falling Erik Haula extended the B's lead to six with a third-period power-play goal, the Finnish center netted career goal No. 100. But the goal also came with assists from Charlie Coyle and Craig Smith, and with each player picking up the 200th assist of their respective careers on the helper.

SAW THE PUCK IN THREE PIECES.

With Monday's victory, the Bruins pushed their victorious run in Los Angeles to four straight road wins over the Kings dating back to 4-1 win in Feb. 2017. It's now tied for the longest road streak over the Kings in franchise history, matching a four-game winning streak that ran from March 1971 through March 1972. The Bruins are few years away from matching their longest road unbeaten streak against the Kings, however, as the Bruins went unbeaten in LA in six games from January 1969 through October 1970, with four wins and two ties over that span.

More from 985TheSportsHub.com...

It's been nearly three months since Jake DeBrusk's trade request went public.

The 25-year-old wing has done his part to remain professional and productive while the Bruins attempt to accommodate his request (while refusing to sell for under what they believe to be market value), but has stayed silent. Prior to last night's two-goal outburst, attempts to talk with the Boston wing have been shut down (by DeBrusk). But after scoring two goals, including the overtime winner in a 3-2 final over the Kraken at Seattle's Climate Pledge Arena, DeBrusk took to the microphone, and issued his first comments on the trade request.

“To be honest, I had a meeting with the guys when it first kind of hit or first got out there and I told them I wouldn’t be a distraction, so I respectfully plead the fifth on all of those," DeBrusk said when asked about the reasoning behind his trade request. "I just wanna talk about the game and stuff. Obviously, I haven’t talked to you guys in a while. It’s a fair question, but I won’t be answering that."

What's been interesting about DeBrusk's request is that his play post-request has certainly been noteworthy, and he's undoubtedly earned his minutes. DeBrusk's latest promotion, which has put him back with Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand, has come amid his hottest run of the season, with four goals in three games.

Is any of that enough to get DeBrusk to reverse course on his request?

"I think I just said the answer in that sense of I don’t wanna be a distraction or anything," DeBrusk said in response to a question wondering if he's reconsidered the request. "It’s one of those things where it’s a tough situation, but I’m focusing day-to-day like I said earlier in the year."

In other words, no, DeBrusk still wants out of Boston. The ask from the Bruins in the meantime has been that he remains professional, works hard, and competes like everybody else in the room. That's happened, too, as DeBrusk has had the full support of everybody in the B's locker room throughout this process.

“It means respect, right? It means they think I’m a good guy and a good teammate, and that’s all you want to be at the end of the day," DeBrusk said. "You play in that room for all those guys and obviously lots of memories considering playoff runs and I’ve grown up in this organization. That’s kind of another thing I said to them, too, was that I’ll try to keep that the same. There’s obviously going to be down days and up days, but to hear them say that is obviously really nice. It kind of just amplifies how close we are as a group. I’ve been very blessed with that.”

In addition to the two goals, DeBrusk had an all around stat sheet-stuffing night, with four shots, three hits, and two blocked shots in nearly 19 minutes of time on ice. He was engaged from start to finish, and won races and forced turnovers to extend offensive-zone time for the Bruins, and it truly felt like a return to the golden days of DeBrusk's time with the Bruins.

And while DeBrusk has done his part to 'forget' both the good and bad of his time in Boston, he can't deny the recent results.

“I’m starting to gain some traction for the first time in a while," DeBrusk admitted. "That’s something every player wants. It takes some puck luck, good passes, and lots of different things to happen. But I’ve always wanted to help this team, so to be able to contribute is the best way I can.”

Here are some other thoughts and notes from a late-night victory in Seattle...

With his six-game suspension behind him following an unsuccessful appeal to NHL commissioner Gary Bettman, Bruins wing Brad Marchand is ready to put the incident in his rear view mirror. In every sense of the term, too, as the Boston superstar has decided not to appeal to an independent arbitrator.

“To appeal, it would essentially, at this point, [be to] just to kind of change for the future," Marchand said prior to Thursday's game. "It’s not as big of a hit against my record and the money standpoint, but I think I’m just gonna move past it. It is what it is at this point, kind of accept the decision and just get back to playing.

"I miss being around the guys and I miss being part of the group so I’m just so excited for that and to be back that I don’t need any of the negative energy that that whole process brings and I’m just gonna move forward.”

The Bruins appeared to lose a forward in the winning effort, with Curtis Lazar on the ice for just 3:52 of action and zero shifts after the second period of Thursday's win over the Kraken.

It's unclear what exactly happened to Lazar, but if he is going to miss any time, the Bruins do have Jesper Froden and Anton Blidh with them as extra forwards for the road trip. The most likely move, you'd think, would be to move Nick Foligno over to right wing and plug Anton Blidh to the left of Tomas Nosek on Boston's fourth line. But Froden's status as a natural right-shot, right wing could have its value to the Bruins.

The 27-year-old Lazar has a career-high six goals, along with 13 points, through 44 games this season.

The Kraken certainly have a Boston flavor this year, and it was on display Thursday night, with four former Bruins in Dave Hakstol's lineup, and five on the roster in total if you include the injured Karson Kuhlman. (Six if you want to include assistant coach Jay Leach, who left his post as the head coach of the P-Bruins for a spot on Hakstol's staff.)

Up front, Ryan Donato finished the loss with one hit and a giveaway in 10:31 of play. The Scituate, Mass. native, who has played for the Wild and Sharks since the Bruins traded him as part of the Charlie Coyle trade in 2019, has totaled 11 goals and 18 points in 49 games for the Kraken this season. Those 11 goals are tied with Yanni Gourde for the third-most among all Seattle skaters this season.

Austin Czarnik, who last skated for the Bruins in 2017-18, skated in his fifth game with the Kraken after Seattle scooped him up off waivers from the Islanders earlier this month, and is now up to two goals and six points in 16 games between New York and the Kraken this year.

Veteran wing Marcus Johansson, meanwhile, finished with an assist and two shots on goal in 18:04 of time on ice. A pending free agent, I do wonder if the Bruins would have an interest in bringing Johansson back for another run with the club should the Kraken decide to trade him. Though a left shot, Johansson was comfortable playing right wing during his time in Boston, which remains a need for the club ahead of this year's deadline.

And on Seattle's backend, Lauzon finished with a Kraken-leading three hits and two blocked shots, and logged a game-high 6:12 shorthanded time on ice against a Boston power play that finished the night with an 0-for-5 mark. Lauzon did, however, come through with an unfortunate 'assist' on DeBrusk's first goal.

Click here for 98.5 The Sports Hub’s complete coverage of the Bruins. 

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.