Boston Bruins analyst Mike Grinnell had some harsh words for Don Sweeney after he traded Brad Marchand at the deadline.
The Florida Panthers and Boston Bruins combined for one of the biggest surprises of the trade deadline last Friday as the reigning Stanley Cup champions acquired the Bruins captain Brad Marchand.
Marchand had been in rumors up to that point, but it still seemed more likely than not that he would end the year with the same team he started his career with.
Alas, that was not the case and many Bruins fans are not happy about it, especially considering the lackluster return Don Sweeney received.
Bruins analyst Mike Grinnell is one of those fans who are unhappy with Sweeney at the moment.
He called out the Bruins general manager for 'throwing in the towel' and added that the Bruins are not better off without Marchand.
'If the Bruins at the deadline signed Brad Marchand, and they went and traded for Brock Nelson and made additions then, yeah, put on the gas pedal. Let's go win this thing. I didn't make this decision. Don Sweeney made the decision to throw in the towel. And any m*ron out there that says the Bruins are better without Brad Marchand, go f*** yourself.'
Obviously, this year's version of the Bruins is not better off without Marchand on the ice.
Without a doubt, the bruins are a worse team as a result of the trade, but as Marchand himself pointed out, they may be better off in the long-run as a result.
Marchand reportedly even told Sweeney that he should make the best decision for the team, implying he was okay with being traded if that's what the situation called for.
'If we were in the playoffs at the point in time, we'd probably be having a much different conversation, and I know that. It's something we had talked about previously, but we weren't - and at that point, very tough decisions have to be made. And the one thing that I always respect, I told Cam and Sweens this - they have a job to do, and they have to make the best decisions for the team.'
That being said, a conditional second round pick in exchange for Brad Marchand at the same trade deadline where players like Anthony Beauvillier and Fabian Zetterlund also fetched second rounders is a hard pill for Bruins fans to swallow.
Hopefully Sweeney will get better returns in future trades if the Bruins do in fact end up heading into a rebuild.
