With the playoffs approaching, Bruce Cassidy talked about where the Bruins are as a team and how different the intensity is in the playoffs compared to the regular season.
One of the primary roster needs for the Boston Bruins to address before Monday's 3 p.m. ET NHL trade deadline is a scoring right wing.
Aside from David Pastrnak, the Bruins have not received enough offense from the right wing position this season, although Craig Smith's recent resurgence -- eight goals in his last seven games -- has been an encouraging sign for Boston.
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One potential trade target to bolster the Bruins' depth and talent at right wing is Conor Garland of the Vancouver Canucks.
According to Dave Pagnotta of The Fourth Period, the Bruins are among several teams that have "checked in" on Garland. Pagnotta also lists the Pittsburgh Penguins, Columbus Blue Jackets, New Jersey Devils and Los Angeles Kings that have done the same.
Garland coming to Boston would be a homecoming. He's from Scituate, Mass.
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From a hockey perspective, Garland would help the B's in a few ways. He's tallied 32 points (14 goals, 18 assists) in 57 games Vancouver this season. Most of his production comes during 5-on-5 action. In fact, his 56 points at 5-on-5 since the start of 2020-21 would rank third on the Bruins behind Brad Marchand (66) and David Pastrnak (60).
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Garland also isn't a rental. He is in the first year of a five-year, $24.75 million contract he signed with the Canucks after they acquired him from the Arizona Coyotes in a trade last summer. He has a reasonable $4.95 million salary cap hit.
Garland is a good trade target for the Bruins based on positional need, his scoring ability and team-friendly deal. Acquiring a top-four defenseman should be the Bruins' top priority before Monday's trade deadline, but an upgrade at right wing is something that general manager Don Sweeney must pursue as well.