The Bruins and Avalanche are reportedly interested. Starting with NBC Sports, Alex Wennberg Boston
With the March 8 NHL trade deadline coming, Boston Bruins general manager Don Sweeney should pursue a middle-six forward to add scoring depth before the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Seattle Kraken center Alex Wennberg may fit.
The Fourth Period stated Monday that “the Boston Bruins and Colorado Avalanche are believed to be eyeing Wennberg.”
Wennberg’s contract expires with a $4.5 million salary cap penalty. He can be a free agent this summer. CapFriendly says the Bruins have $862,500 in cap space. Thus, the B’s may struggle to sign Wennberg unless the Kraken keep some of his compensation.
Wennberg has 21 points (eight goals, 13 assists) in 51 Kraken games this season. According to Natural Stat Trick, he is scoring 1.41 points per 60 minutes at 5-on-5, his highest rate since 2020-21. Wennberg is on track to score 10+ goals for the fourth straight season and average a career-high 18:41 of ice time.
Middle-six wings are better for the Bruins than centers. They have several middle players. They lack wing goal-scorers following David Pastrnak and Brad Marchand.
The center market may benefit sellers. Elias Lindholm and Sean Monahan, the top two centers reported to be available, have been moved in recent weeks. Both players received first-round picks (Lindholm more). The Bruins can’t win a bidding war because they lack high-end trade assets and no selections in the first three rounds of the 2024 draft.
Of course, Kraken may not sell. They are six points off of a Western Conference wild card playoff place on Monday. Not an insurmountable gap. However, if the Kraken slide in the rankings, trading veterans with expiring contracts for assets makes sense.
