Report: Bruins turn down trade offer for goalie Linus Ullmark

According to a report from Boston Bruins insider Ty Anderson of 98.5 The Sports Hub, the Bruins had a "fair, market value" trade offer for goaltender Linus Ullmark this offseason, but refused to pull the trigger on a deal.

From Anderson:

Knowing their cap situation and how they had to ditch money, teams were eager to rip the Bruins off at every stop and turn. (The fact that they didn’t have to throw in a pick to get rid of Taylor Hall’s $6 million salary is probably a miracle, though it explains why the Bruins received two minor-league defensemen in exchange for Hall.) Ullmark also had considerable trade protection, with a no-trade clause that required his consent to be traded to about half the league.

My understanding — and this is through some backchannel rumblings and conversations, so take it with a grain of salt, of course — is that there was one team out there who had interest in giving Sweeney and the Bruins what would you consider a fair, market value return for Ullmark. But that trade would have required a corresponding trade that never happened, and it would have also required Ullmark agreeing to waive his no-trade clause.

- Ty Anderson

Anderson then goes on to explain that the Bruins never even entertained the idea of trading goaltender Jeremy Swayman either:

As it relates to trading Jeremy Swayman, I don’t think the Bruins were ever all that interested in doing that. I also know that there was a rumor out there that suggested that Swayman wanted a trade to be closer to family in Alaska. What I can tell you regarding that is that Swayman’s parents no longer live in Alaska, and that that rumor is and was “bogus.”

- Ty Anderson

Honestly, there have been Ullmark rumors for months at this point so I don't know what to expect. Frankly, I think GM Don Sweeney was smart not to just give Ullmark away for cap space. I mean... the guy is the reigning Vezina Trophy winner after all, he should be worth a considerable amount in a trade. As it is though, the Bruins enter the season with both Ullmark and Swayman under contract, but with considerable holes in the lineup elsewhere. Something's got to give.