7 Worst Trades in Boston Bruins History

As mentioned in this article’s companion piece, the Boston Bruins have come out on the winning end of several of the most lopsided trades in NHL history. Milt Schmidt turned around a moribund franchise by acquiring Phil Esposito, Ken Hodge and Fred Stanfield from Chicago for pennies on the dollar.

For 28 years, Harry Sinden served as an elite judge of talent and promise; the man seemingly always knew when to jettison one player while buying low on a superior asset. Even Jeff Gorton, interim general manager for just two months in 2006, scored a big win by acquiring Tuukka Rask for Andrew Raycroft.

Alas, it hasn’t ALWAYS been sunshine, roses and victories for the Bruins’ front office. This has never been more apparent than in recent years. However, even the mighty Sinden has a few trades on which he’d like to take a mulligan.

You’ll notice several recent and notable omissions. The trading of a third-round pick for Zac Rinaldo proved to be horrendous; there’s no doubt about that. However, until the player drafted with that pick (goaltender Kirill Ustimenko) turns into anything more than a long-term project, the deal does not warrant inclusion on this list.

The same goes for the trade of Dougie Hamilton. At the time, general manager Don Sweeney was blasted for the paltry return for a potential number-one defenseman.

Nevertheless, Boston was able to salvage value by drafting Zachary Senyshyn, Jacob Forsbacka-Karlsson and Jeremy Lauzon with the acquired picks; the three make up a sizable contingent of Boston’s impressive and exciting pipeline of young talent. More time is required to properly assess that trade.

Without further ado, these are the seven (eight, including honorable mention) worst trades in Boston Bruins history.

Dishonorable Mention

Bruins Acquire: Trent McCleary, Third Round Pick (Eric Naud)

Senators Acquire: Shawn McEachern

All the pieces seemed to be in place for Shawn McEachern to enjoy a lengthy career in Boston. He was an Irish kid from Waltham who tore up the college hockey ranks at Boston University. After splitting three seasons between Pittsburgh and Los Angeles, he came home, recording 24 goals and 53 points for his hometown Bruins.

To the surprise of many, McEachern was moved in the offseason for Trent McCleary, a bottom-six grinder. A third-round pick also came to Boston in the deal, which was used to select…