Teams aren't trading top 10 cost controlled hope for soon to be 30 year old second pair defenseman and a prospect. You want top 7 you can go Hamilton and Peverley dump for a that and a bottom 6 depth guy. All our prospects at the top come with one major concern- all different but they are all there. Subban seems to be the cleanest but he's cost controlled over the next 4-5 years factoring in a rookie deal. Why would Boston ever trade this guy
Most of the time, I completely agree with you - but not here, not the bolded. Too much attachment to futures around here, but they are what they are - a prospect who COULD turn out to be a top flight player in the NHL.
The suggestion here of trading Boychuk + a prospect for the 5th overall pick is really based on a few factors. For one, Carolina is looking for a top 4 defenceman that has a manageable cap hit. Boychuk fits, he's a cup winner and a proven playoff performer - how many options does Carolina have in this arena? How many comparables to what Boychuk would bring them?
My thinking is the herd would be thin. Yes, there are better players to fit the bill, but are they possibly available?
The next issue is cost - Boychuk won't bring you a top 10 pick, granted - but packaged with a prospect that has developed some but will be cost-controllable and likely to make the roster would be a major benefit to the Canes, IMO. Question is who? Spooner? Koko? Knight? Any of those three would a solid addition to that package.
The Bruins, obviously, would save money on the cap here, allowing Horton AND Rask to be resigned - and we'd have a great potential prospect developing for the future. The downside is we'd lose a great physical dman, and a darn good prospect we've been grooming.
That all being said, I also think I may be biased in my assessment of Boychuk, and the rest of the world may not see him as a great top 4 dman who's physical, durable, responsible, has a rocket of a shot, has won a Stanley Cup and under the age of 30.
Or, maybe the world does see that...