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NHL Rumors: Will Boston Bruins sign Jacob Trouba to offer sheet?

By Dave Stevenson

Apr 5, 2016; Anaheim, CA, USA; Winnipeg Jets defenseman Jacob Trouba (8) anad Anaheim Ducks center Ryan Garbutt (16) battle for the puck in the first period during an NHL game at Honda Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 5, 2016; Anaheim, CA, USA; Winnipeg Jets defenseman Jacob Trouba (8) anad Anaheim Ducks center Ryan Garbutt (16) battle for the puck in the first period during an NHL game at Honda Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports /
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According to a recent rumor, the Boston Bruins could be signing Winnipeg Jets defenseman Jacob Trouba to an offer sheet. But how realistic is that?

One of the most underexploited features of the NHL offseason is the offer sheet. Teams are allowed to sign restricted free agents to an offer sheet and the team that holds his right can choose to match the offer or accept the compensation depending on how large of a contract the player is signed to. Reportedly, the Boston Bruins are interested in signing Winnipeg Jets defenseman Jacob Trouba to an offer sheet.

However, let’s look at the logistics of it. Teams are compensated for losing restricted free agents signed to an offer sheet courtesy of draft picks, specifically those that originally belong to the team that signed the free agent in question. Boston lost their 2017 second round pick in the Brett Connolly trade and their 2017 third round pick in the Zac Rinaldo trade.

What’s interesting is that a majority of the levels of compensation involve a second and/or third round pick. There are only two levels of compensation that don’t require either. One of them is the lowest one, which is anything under $1,239,266. That level requires no compensation. The other one is anything over $9,388,080. That level requires four first round picks.

It sounds like the Bruins can’t feasibly sign Trouba to an offer sheet unless it’s of the minimum or the maximum level. The Jets would happily match it if it is of the minimum variety. However, the Bruins would also be significantly overpaying for Trouba if they offer him the maximum. Trouba is a very good young defenseman despite his flaws, but the Bruins would have to make him the highest paid defenseman in the NHL in order to sign him to an offer sheet. That’s simply outlandish.

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