Bruins, Wild swap depth forwards, draft picks
06/29/2024 03:00 PM
Trades have been happening non-stop during the 2024 NHL Draft, which proceeded on Saturday. The latest took place between the Boston Bruins and the Minnesota Wild.
Via Sportsnet:
The Bruins have dealt Jakub Lauko to the Wild in exchange for Vinni Lettieri. pic.twitter.com/TNuF4hI2lj
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) June 29, 2024
Jakub Lauko is heading to the Wild, while the Bruins get Vinni Lettieri. The teams also swapped draft picks. This isn’t a huge deal by any means as both players are simply depth forwards.
Lauko played in 60 games for Boston in 2023-24, scoring two goals and tallying eight assists. He’s only featured in 83 NHL contests in total, also spending quite a bit of time in the AHL. Perhaps Lauko could get more of an opportunity with the big-league club in Minnesota.
As for Lettieri, he’s been up and down between the AHL and NHL since 2017-18. The former University of Minnesota standout has had stints with the New York Rangers, Anaheim Ducks, and the Wild.
Bruins making changes this offseason
This is just one small deal amongst what should be a busy offseason for the Bruins. They exceeded expectations in 23-24 after their shocking first-round exit the year before, finishing second in the Atlantic Division with a 47-20-15 record and a total of 109 points.
Yes, the Florida Panthers once again eliminated them in the postseason, but Boston should be strong again in 2024-25. They just traded Linus Ullmark to the Ottawa Senators and Jake DeBrusk appears to be ending his time with the organization, too. Jeremy Swayman is in line to be the first-choice netminder.
GM Don Sweeney said there’s been little progression in extension talks with DeBrusk ahead of free agency on July 1st. Via NHL.com:
"We had been in negotiations with Jake," Sweeney said. "Haven't had any productive talks in quite some time, but at the end of the day, that's his prerogative to see what July 1 brings for him."
DeBrusk led the Bruins in scoring in the playoffs but his numbers overall took a dip during the regular season. Sweeney made it clear Boston’s priority is to beef up their depth at the center position:
"We'd like to deepen the middle of the ice with us, so that's where we've been focused on, trying to have those talks with our group to say, 'Ok, well who would be the guy?' and then make, hopefully, the pitch at the right time that we can add a player of that nature,” Sweeney said.
"We are in a situation where we can look to add to our core group of guys, and that includes also some of the younger guys, as [Bruins president Cam Neely] mentioned," Sweeney said. "But we are going to be aggressive, to be able to complement what we currently have in some areas."
We’ll see how much the Bruins can improve ahead of the upcoming season.
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