I'd sign him to a 2 year deal, give him an nmc and then buy popcorn to watch people melt down over it
Player Discussion Brad Marchand XI - Marching forward we go
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BruinDust
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- Aug 2, 2005
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Two facts for me. 1) This franchise is not about to do a full tear down rebuild. 2) Brad Marchand is still the 2nd best offensive player on a team desperate for offensive talent.
So it it's a re-tool, seems to me they would be better off extending him if they can come to an agreement. They need more talented offensive players, not less.
But..........
If they can't get him extended before the deadline, they absolutely MUST trade him. This is a rare opportunity to have the No.1 trade target at this year's deadline. And this isn't a contending team so there is really no excuse.
And to be honest, I really don't care where Brad Marchand wants to go. He can be traded to any one of 23 teams without his consent. I'm doing what is best for the Bruins and taking the best deal possible. His camp is certainly free to voice their opinion and I would take it under consideration, but he isn't calling the shot here ultimately. He knew the deal when he signed that 8 year contract. I'm not taking a lesser deal from say Colorado, just because he wants to go play with his buddy MacKinnon.
So it it's a re-tool, seems to me they would be better off extending him if they can come to an agreement. They need more talented offensive players, not less.
But..........
If they can't get him extended before the deadline, they absolutely MUST trade him. This is a rare opportunity to have the No.1 trade target at this year's deadline. And this isn't a contending team so there is really no excuse.
And to be honest, I really don't care where Brad Marchand wants to go. He can be traded to any one of 23 teams without his consent. I'm doing what is best for the Bruins and taking the best deal possible. His camp is certainly free to voice their opinion and I would take it under consideration, but he isn't calling the shot here ultimately. He knew the deal when he signed that 8 year contract. I'm not taking a lesser deal from say Colorado, just because he wants to go play with his buddy MacKinnon.
Sheppy
Registered User
What would you sign him for?
(I have no problem extending him, but it shouldn't be north of $6M)
This entire post reminded me of Loui Erickson. Remember when we had the chance to trade him as a pending UFA for a 1st round pick but kept him instead because we were squeaking into the playoffs and “you never know”?
That didn’t pay off. Shockingly.
whatsbruin
Registered User
Baring a miracle , this team isn't competing soon, and a rebuild is 2 to 3 years away. He's earned the right to decide his own fate. If I'm Sweeney, I'd explain to Brad the plans for the team, and have him decide. If he wants to be traded, at the trade deadline, with multi teams wanting him, they could get a decent haul and speed up a rebuild, and assuming multi teams are interested ask his preference and try to send him there.
My guess is that he won't want to go anywhere. He has roots.
I was thinking 2 years, $6 mil ($3 mil per year) plus a signing bonus up front. Not quite Krejci and Bergeron but similar.
Sheppy
Registered User
I'd be good with this, honestly. That's kind of the avenue I'm hoping for. It's the higher dollar value I'm worried about if he wants $6M per.
I'm hoping these conversations are happening and they know where they'll be soon.
BruinDust
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What fate is he deciding? If he's offered an extension, he's free to sign it. If he declines the extension, trade him to the highest bidder of the 23 teams he can be traded to.
If the Bruins decide they'd like to move on and not offer an extension, than trade him to etc. etc.
Imagine, Sweeney decides to not offer Marchand an extension or Marchand and the Bruins are deadlocked and can't come to terms, and Marchand tells him that's fine, but I'd prefer to play out the rest of the season in Boston anyways? So the Bruins get no assets for him, and he either leaves as a UFA on July 1st or flat out retires (which is also a possibility).
I think they are happening and now it is a matter of what they decide to do overall from now until June 30th. Marchy has always followed the same path when it come to contracts like Bergy, Krejci and Z. I think he'll either go year to year or do a 2 year deal with the agreement that he's done after that.
At this point in his career, it is all about being healthy as possible, being a good leader and teammate with the ultimate goal of playing in Cortina next February for Team Canada.
They 1000% will not sign him before the offseason, so I'm not sure i agree that they need to trade him at deadline if they don't have ink to paper by then.
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Not that I'm saying they made the right move, but in fairness they were 3 points behind the division lead 4 days before the trade deadline, so it's not like they were 10th place hoping to squeak in and make some noise
Dennis Bonvie
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BruinDust
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I just see them fitting him in once they fill out other positions. Gives them the flexibility to go bonus heavy like they did with Bergy/Krejci if they need to.
I also doubt they are worried that he's going to walk so really what's the rush
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Dr Quincy
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- Jun 19, 2005
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Signing bonus up front doesn't lower the AAV, it is calculated as part of the salary.
BruinDust
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They can only go bonus heavy on a 1-year deal. You can be guaranteed that if he's un-signed on July 1st, teams will be calling his agent offering deals beyond 1 year. I think term speaks volumes when it comes to contract offers.
I also think the situation is very different than what we saw with Krejci and Bergeron. One, the Bruins do not need him as badly as they needed 37/46 at the time. Two, the organization is in a very different place, this isn't about maxing out all the cap space available using bonus money trying to keep the band together for one more dance. They lack young assets, and frankly they have a management group under more pressure than they did 2-3 years ago.
You may certainly be right about how they handle Marchand moving forward. Personally I think that approach is a mistake. I don't even like the idea of trading him and re-signing him this summer as a UFA. Extend him prior to the deadline, or move on.
I did forget that the 37+ bonuses were only on 1 year. I could certainly see them going year by year as they did with Chara to have some flexibility in adding players. I guess it all depends if we are talking about a full rebuild or retool where they might still value cap space
Lord Ahriman
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I would give him that, maybe up to $7M. That said, they must reach an agreement before trade deadline, otherwise they should trade him.
smithformeragent
Moderator
I'll play devil's advocate:
Will we remember Patrice Bergeron's legacy differently than Ray Bourque's or Zdeno Chara's because he finished his career as a Bruin and the others didn't?
It killed me to see Drew Bledsoe traded and Pedro Martinez leave in free agency.
I used to fall in love with the player.
I've seen over the years that it's a business, and there comes a time to move on from a player for whatever reason.
If the team is out of it, you're faced with a difficult question: What is more important?
- A guy like Marchand finishing his career as a Bruin
- Acquiring assets for the future
Something just rubs me the wrong way with trading a guy who has taken less money to be here his entire career if he truly wants to retire a Bruin.
I know you're probably right and the smart move is get something for him while he still has value
