Torey Krug “Very Opposed” To One-Year Deal, Will Explore Market

Boston Bruins defenseman Torey Krug made it clear to the media once again Thursday morning that he wants to remain a Boston Bruin but he won’t be staying on a “bet on yourself”, one-year contract at less than market value. He also won’t be leaving for any such contract either. 

“I’m very opposed to that,” Torey Krug said Thursday morning in a Zoom call with the media. “I’ve bet on myself and I’ve taken shorter-term deals and less amount of money my whole career now. So this is my time, in terms of my value at its peak, and I have the ability, and I’m in a position now where I need to make the most of it. So I’m very opposed to something like that. I’ve done it long enough now and that’s the situation I’m facing.”

Since last fall when he reported to Bruins training camp for the 2019-20 season and up until he asked for a pause on contract questions from the media, Krug has expressed frustration that there were minimal to no contract talks between Boston Bruins General Manager Don Sweeney, his agent Lewis Gross and himself. On Thursday morning, Krug said the radio silence has continued during the playoffs and since he and the Bruins were eliminated by the Tampa Bay Lightning in five games with a 3-2 loss in double overtime on Monday night.

“The contact was very few and far between for whatever reason. It is what it is…I don’t really know what the future holds in terms of the coming weeks,” Krug said.

An NHL source told Boston Hockey Now though that both Torey Krug and the Bruins have made it known they hope to at least know where they each stand in very short order.

“Listen, Don Sweeney, Torey Krug and his agent Lewis Gross know how different things are now and the offseason will be at warp speed so, yeah, word around the league is both Krug and the Bruins want to have a resolution ASAP,” the source told BHN early Wednesday evening. “What I keep hearing is that if Krug and the Bruins don’t figure it out by the draft, the Bruins will look to trade his negotiating rights.”

While Krug continually made it clear in the 20-plus minutes Zoom call with the media Thursday, that his intent is to still find common ground with Sweeney and the Bruins, he did acknowledge that he will likely have to really start exploring other opportunities soon.

“I gotta be honest, I haven’t thought about any other team or any other situation,” Krug said. “It’s been. …I was very truthful and honest with you guys when I told you I wasn’t thinking about it during the season. I invested all my time in what’s going on with the Bruins, and I was very hopeful that it would result in ending up back with the Bruins. 

So I haven’t thought about any other team or any other situation to date. Likely as we approach free agency, I’ll probably have to do that. But I haven’t thought about anything. I’m very proud of what we’ve done here in Boston over the years, and being part of that core group, guys have come and gone, and I’ve managed to stay for eight years now. I’m very happy that I was part of it. So hopefully it continues and hopefully, I still am. I’ve done everything they’ve seemingly asked of me and I’m proud of that…There’s nothing personal about it. It’s business.”

Torey Krug just finished a four-year contract with the Bruins that carried an annual cap hit of $5.2 million. Krug has had 40 or more assists in each season since signing that extension back on June 30, 2016 and had three straight seasons with 50 or points until the COVID19-shortened season he and the Bruins just finished. Krug finished with nine goals and 40 assists in the 2019-20 regular season and then added six assists in 13 Stanley Cup Playoff games in the NHL bubble in Toronto. During the Boston Bruins’ run to the 2019 Stanley Cup Final, Krug had 16 helpers and 18 points in 24 games.

Seemingly thinking this might be the last media scrum he has with Boston reporters, Krug made a point to thank the media contingent that has covered him since he entered the league in April 2012 after signing as an NCAA free agent out of Michigan State in March of that year. 

“I appreciate all you guys,” Krug said. “All the questions over the years, good & bad. Your professionalism. Hopefully, I’ll see you soon at the rinks, if not I’ll see you elsewhere. Everyone here in the chat that I’ve seen over the yrs, I really appreciate everyone.”