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Sweeney ‘Dearly Hopes’ Krug Isn’t Done With Bruins

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After Boston Bruins defenseman Torey Krug told the media on Tuesday that he hoped he hadn’t played “my last game as a Boston Bruin”,  Bruins General Manager Don Sweeney expressed the same sentiment about his top-scoring defenseman – who’s on an expiring contract – on Friday.

“I dearly hope Torey hasn’t played his last game (with the Bruins), this year or going forward,” the Bruins GM said in a Zoom Conference call with reporters. “He’s been a big part of any success we’ve had as an organization. He’s a special player, both on and off the ice. He means a lot in the locker room and I think everybody could acknowledge his attributes on the ice and his importance to our team.”

After Krug said on Tuesday that he, and his agent Lewis Gross had not heard from Sweeney and the Bruins since the NHL paused its season on March 12, Sweeney said that he has been in touch with the agents all of his potential unrestricted and restricted free agents. Like Krug though, he did acknowledge the reality of the salary cap and how not only the Bruins cap space would affect talks but also the uncertainty of the league will as well.

“In a cap world, we try to fit the pieces together. We have had very, very good discussions with Torey’s group, but we just haven’t found a landing spot and that’s understandable given the circumstances of where the cap is,” Sweeney said. “As I’ve said, every discussion and every contract has its own timeline and we’re hopeful we’ll find a resolution with Torey and Lewis Gross but at this point in time, we haven’t been able to do so. But it’s been very amicable. We’ve made our feelings perfectly clear that we respect what Torey has done and what he’s capable of doing for us as a member of the Boston Bruins and we hope that continues.”

Krug admitted Tuesday that while he loves playing for the city of Boston and its fans, the current situation has, as it has so many, left him in limbo.

“It’s been a special place for me and my family to grow. My love for the game and playing in front of these fans has been very special to me,” the Bruins highest-scoring defenseman for seven straight seasons said. “But [this situation] hasn’t given me any clarity. It makes you wonder about this process a little more because I was just in the moment thinking only about helping my team win games and hopefully push our team toward winning a championship.”

Krug is on the last season of a four-year contract that carried a $5.2 million salary cap hit. Krug has nine goals and 40 assists in 61 games this season. He already has his fifth straight season with 40 or more helpers and was about to have his fourth straight season with 50 points or more when the season paused.

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