Rumor: Bruins and Canucks linked in trade discussion for top winger

A recent report from The Boston Globe's Fluto Shinzawa revealed that Boston Bruins president Cam Neely needs to fill two holes on his team ahead of the trade deadline in February - at the left defense and right wing positions.

The Bruins have been on an absolute tear for awhile now - they overcame adversity throughout the first couple months of the season. Injuries piled on to star players and to depth players alike, and Tuukka Rask's poor performance sparked controversy of who the real starting goaltender of the team was.

Well, now Rask is 10-0-1 in his last 11 starts, and the Bruins have finally surpassed the Toronto Maple Leafs in the standings to take 2nd place in the Atlantic division, with two games in hand to boot.

Shinzawa believes that on the short-term, the player Boston is targeting is Thomas Vanek. The right winger is having another productive season, putting up 28 points in 39 games for the Vancouver Canucks. That puts him in second place on the team in terms of points totals, as only rookie phenom Brock Boeser has more points (38). 

Vanek is even more enticing as he is on an expiring contract that only pays $2 million. By the trade deadline, over half of that cap hit will already have been absorbed by Vancouver, making him a truly cheap asset to acquire, from a financial standpoint. As Vancouver's playoff hopes dwindle away once again, Vanek is most likely to be traded away by the deadline, and the Boston Bruins will be one of his top suitors.