Bruins Overhaul the Power Play

In probably their biggest mid-season acquisition since the 2004 trade deadline (the separate deals for Sergei Gonchar and Michael Nylander), the Bruins have shored up a dreadful-of-late power play unit as well as deepening the defensive corps by trading for Maple Leafs blueliner Tomas Kaberle for Providence center Joe Colborne, the Bruins' 1st round pick this year, and a conditional 2nd round pick in 2012.

Besides the obvious boon of picking up Kaberle, the Bruins were able to keep the Maple Leafs 1st round pick in this June's draft which they already owned from the Phil Kessel trade. As of now the Leafs have the 6th worst record in the NHL so the Bruins could be looking at picking up another blue-chipper along the lines of Tyler Seguin. But with Toronto in full firesale mode, their record should only continue to head south. Who knows, maybe we win up with a top-2 pick again.

Anyways, Kaberle has so far posted a 3-35-38 line this year in Toronto, with a -2 rating which is actually fairly impressive considering how bad the Leafs are. He has 22 of his assists on the power play, which is great news for a Bruins unit middling at 18.1%, good enough for 14th in the NHL. The B's are near the top of the league in 5-on-5 goals, but it'll take good special teams play to make it farther into the post-season.

In a separate move the Bruins sent Blake Wheeler and Mark Stuart to hockey oblivion (Atlanta) in exchange for Rich Peverly and Boris Valabik. It's tough to see Stuart go, but it's a sight for sore eyes to see Blake Wheeler sent packing. Since a promising rookie year in 2008-09, Wheeler has been maddeningly inconsistent since then, only occasionally showing flashes of physical play around the net that would make him a much more effective player. Maybe playing under less of a microscope in Atlanta will light a fire under Wheels's ass, but I doubt it. If he can't make plays with the centers he has in Boston, what makes you think Atlanta will cure his woes?

Great start to this road trip for the Bruins, beating teams they're clearly superior to in the Islanders and the Senators. With the exception of the Canucks, the Bruins face off against a flurry of non-playoff teams on the remainder of the road trip, including two stops in Alberta and a rematch with Ottawa. With 4 points so far, a reasonable goal would be coming back to Boston with 10 out of a possible 12.

It's not all bad news, Blake. No one will notice you suck in Atlanta.