Post-Trade Bruins vs. Post-Trade Coyotes

What would otherwise be a late-season stinker -- the slumping Bruins trying to score 2 garbage points against the brutal Coyotes -- will be a little more interesting because it happens to fall on the day after the trade deadline.

Do the Lineup Shuffle!

Rink Rap takes a shot at guessing Claude Julien's line combinations, pairing Recchi with Savard on the first line and moving Lucic to the third with Bergeron. Here's what I would do:

Lucic-Savard-Kessel
Wheeler-Krejci-Ryder
Recchi-Bergeron-Kobasew
Bitz-Yelle-Thornton

That's right, I'd scratch Axelsson's unproductive butt. He's goalless with 3 assists in his last 18 games, which wouldn't be so bad if he weren't -5 on the best even-strength team in the league. If he plays he'll likely bump Bitz off the roster, which seems both unproductive and unfair to a quickly-developing young player.

Disagree? Post your "If I was Claude Julien for a day" lines in the comments.

A few positive notes:
- The Coyotes are going to be a fundamentally different team since they shipped half their roster to other cities this week. At the very least they will spend the first part of the game adjusting to new linemates and a new system. Frankly, there's no reason this one should be close after 2 periods. If it even comes close to OT, that "panic" button will begin to look tempting.
- Milan Lucic is "good to go" for tonight's game according to Julien.
- Tim Thomas will get the start in what should be a confidence-building effort.
- Mark Recchi's locker is conveniently located in between Blake Wheeler and Byron Bitz, both rookie wingers. That trade was about more than just power-play goals.
- Danny Picard says there were a lot of smiles in the locker room this morning.

Good previews as usual over at SBNation, from Stanley Cup of Chowder (Bruins) and Five For Howling (Coyotes). Looks like they're still sore over the Wheeler thing.

Bruins trade for experience (Recchi), depth (Montador)

Looks like Pete Chiarelli's going to settle on 2 moves today:

To Anaheim:
F Petteri Nokelainen
To Boston:
D Steve Montador

To Tampa:
D Matt Lashoff
F Martins Karsums
To Boston:
F Mark Recchi
2010 2nd round pick

It would appear that these deals went hand-in-hand. By acquiring Montador, Chiarelli gained enough depth on the blueline to safely unload Lashoff. Ultimately, this means that the Bruins traded 3 futures for 2 roster players and a decent draft pick.

It's not the blockbuster Kessel-for-Pronger deal that the media would've loved, but this certainly improves the Bruins' prospects in both the present and future.

For the present - The Bruins just got a little more experienced, a little deeper and a little more stable. Recchi is a much-needed left handed winger, but more importantly a steadying hand in the locker room and a resource for young LWs Lucic and Wheeler. Montador adds depth to the defensive corps, and in the event that a defenseman is injured he will make Claude Julien's decisions a little easier. Neither move will have a dramatic effect on the roster, but both make the Bruins slightly more playoff-ready.

For the future - Lashoff is a solid prospect for Tampa but he didn't appear to have much of a future in Boston after making little out of his chances with the Bruins. Karsums was simply a casualty of the depth chart. The only significant loss is Nokelainen, who has been on IR for a month and looked to have been leapfrogged by prospects like Bitz and Sobotka. And in the process, the Bruins acquired a 2nd round pick -- recent players the Bruins have drafted in the 2nd or later include Lucic, Sobotka, Hunwick, and rookie sensation Kris Versteeg.

Considering the Bruins' cap constraints and the conservative nature of this trading season, I have to give Chiarelli props for improving the Bruins' Cup chances without making any painful sacrifices.