The Boston Bruins
Boston Bruins Acquire:
Hampus Lindholm (D)
Joshua Brown (D)
Boston grabbed perhaps the top defenseman available in Hampus Lindholm. The cost to do so was a first, two seconds, and two prospects. Given that Lindholm is a player who hasn’t put up great numbers lately, it’s an awful lot to bet that that is just because he was playing on a bad team.
There is the potential for a great reward with this trade, but the risk is very high. Also, consider that in order to fit Lindholm in on their top pairing the Bruins actually broke up the NHL’s best 5v5 defense pairing, which potentially undermines the improvement.
He’ll be a top pairing defenseman for Boston, and Brown will be their 7th or 8th defenseman. Boston did a good job upgrading their defense without giving up anyone from their NHL roster, and if it leads to victory, then the futures obviously won’t hurt so bad.