Recent report confirms it for Tyler Bertuzzi and the Boston Bruins
The Maple Leafs need to stay in contention mode and are doing their best to re-sign Tyler Bertuzzi.
However, in desperation, the Maple Leafs have resorted to attempting to sign one of Bertuzzi's best friends on the blueline.
It appears the Maple Leafs will try to sign, Jordan Oesterle, as a depth defenseman for the team. Oesterele last played with the Calgary Flames and the Calgary Wranglers in the AHL.
Oesterle only played 22 games in the NHL this season, with an ATOI of 13:31, and only produced 2 assists in the meantime. Oesterle, with 400 games of NHL play could be a great depth add as veteran defensemen in Toronto like Joel Edmunson, Illya Lyubushkin, T.J. Brodie and Mark Giordano will likely to be lost to free-agency.
Perhaps, this could be a way GM Don Sweeney could find a way to turn Bertuzzi's glare back to Boston, as the Bruins will also need depth defenseman, and if he signs Oesterle to a two-way deal, it wouldn't consume that much cap space?
Oesterle signed a 1-year, two-way deal in Calgary for $925K AAV and the Bruins could offer him the same value for his next deal.
Bertuzzi, who is Oesterle's friend had a slow start in Toronto during the beginning of the year, making the $5.5M deal seem like an albatross, until the the end of the season where he went on a tear, scoring 20 goals and 40 points.
He could be had for a discount, due to his lack of consistent production, and the Bruins could swoop in and steal talent from a rival, with this one neat trick: signing both Bertuzzi and Oesterle.
Source: Maple Leafs Daily
Leafs may entice Tyler Bertuzzi to stay by signing one of his best friends
| POLL | ||
Should the Bruins attempt to sign Bertuzzi and Oesterle? | ||
| Yes | 88 | 59.1 % |
| No | 61 | 40.9 % |
| List of polls | ||
