At least one Bruin will swap his Black-and-Gold uniform Wednesday for the glittering new garb of the Vegas Golden Knights, as the NHL’s 31st franchise handpicks its roster in the long-awaited expansion draft.
Boston general manager Don Sweeney, who is not expected to talk with the media until Thursday morning in Chicago, a day ahead of the two-day NHL entry draft at United Center, for months has planned around the seeming fait accompli of losing a right-shot defenseman.
No change in Boston’s planning had been announced as of Tuesday evening. In all likelihood, the Bruins will lose veteran big man Adam McQuaid or Colin Miller, whose youth (24) and speedy wheels probably make him the more tantalizing pick for Vegas GM George McPhee, the ex-Capitals boss.
The league on Sunday made public the protected lists of the 30 clubs that must offer up the goods for Vegas, whose owner, Bill Foley, paid a record $500 million to toss his hat and wallet into the rink. McQuaid and Miller were the obvious gems among Boston’s unprotecteds.
Unless Sweeney and McPhee cobble together a deal — including the likes of, say, Ryan Spooner (protected) or Matt Beleskey (unprotected) — one of those two blue liners will be destined to be one of the The Strip’s top six when the season opens in October.
Lost in all the expansion chatter over the weekend was just how far Beleskey’s stock has fallen in the Hub of Hockey. In July 2015, he was the first high-profile UFA acquisition by Sweeney, who had just taken over GM duties from the fired Peter Chiarelli. Not even 24 months later, the 29-year-old left wing was left unprotected among the scraps that make up the yard sale of the expansion draft.
Upon leaving Causeway Street this spring, following a very disappointing 3-5—8 season, Beleskey was told by coach Bruce Cassidy to be ready off the hop come September training camp. Cassidy preaches pace, and Beleskey was deaf to the sermon last season, in part because of a knee injury in the first half that rendered him useless right through the playoffs.
Beleskey signed for five years/$19 million. He still has three years/$11 million remaining at a cap hit of $3.8 million. It’s not a huge number in a league with a cap ceiling of $75 million for the upcoming season, but the Bruins would have to dress up a deal with “value addeds’’ for the Knights to bite. It would mean including a draft pick (an overall McPhee priority) and/or the Bruins picking up some of the salary Beleskey will collect through April 2020.
If Sweeney could persuade McPhee to take Beleskey at a discount, perhaps with a draft pick attached, it would come with McPhee’s promise to lay off both McQuaid and Miller in Wednesday’s draft. Sweeney could incentivize the Beleskey deal even further if McPhee were willing to select Jimmy Hayes, another huge disappointment here the last two seasons, and a co-member of the Zero Sum Line early last season with Beleskey.
For an overall cap hit of $6.1 million last season, that duo combined for a paltry five goals. Sweeney would reclaim his status of “Donnie Houdini’’ if he could make both disappear to Vegas.
Meanwhile, Spooner could be the more logical trading piece. Although his game is often timid, the forward has shown to be effective on the power play, particularly with his silky feeds off the half-wall.
Down to his last card in Game 6 of the playoff series vs. Ottawa, Cassidy made the curious decision to dress Beleskey ahead of Spooner. Predictably, Beleskey added nothing. Spooner at least could have brought something to the power play. Hardly a decision that decided the club’s postseason fate, but curious nonetheless.
Spooner, 25, is now a restricted free agent and reasonably could argue for a salary boost to the $2.5 million range. That sounds hefty for a kid who delivered only 11-28—39 last season, but keep in mind, that ranked him sixth in team scoring. Which, in part, underscores why the Bruins protected him ahead of the expansion draft.
If McPhee could pencil in Spooner as his No. 5 or 6 scorer next season, he would be far wiser to prioritize a deal for Spooner ahead of one for Beleskey even at a deep discount.
A possible option here for Vegas would be goaltending prospect Malcolm Subban, a former first-round draft pick (No. 24, 2012). The athletic Subban has spent five seasons with AHL Providence, showing great promise in some streaks, but was jittery in his two NHL starts.
Above all, Subban has his age (only 23) and athleticism going for him, and like his famous brother, P.K., the star Nashville blue liner, he could blossom into a personality.
In a league desperate for characters and charisma, Subban could be enticing, particularly for an expansion team that will be in need of galvanizing a fan base. First, though, he must stop the puck.
Kevin Paul Dupont can be reached at kevin.dupont@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeKPD.
