The NHL trade deadline is incredibly unpredictable, but absolutely nobody had this on their 2026 bingo card. With the March 6 deadline looming, the Vancouver Canucks are reportedly fielding calls on a player who seemed untouchable just months ago: Jake DeBrusk.
But the real shocker? According to David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period, the Boston Bruins are heavily interested in bringing him back. Yes, those Bruins.
If you’re wondering how we got here, it’s simple: desperation on both sides. The Canucks are shockingly sitting at the bottom of the league standings, prompting a massive front-office retool. Meanwhile, Boston is starving for a top-six winger who can ease the immense scoring burden on David Pastrnak. A reunion sounds crazy on the surface given DeBrusk’s rocky past in Boston, but when you look at the reshuffled Bruins bench and DeBrusk’s proven playoff pedigree, the pieces actually fit perfectly. Here is my inside look at why this blockbuster trade might actually happen.
The Vancouver Canucks Are Ready to Shake Things Up
When Jake DeBrusk signed his current deal, nobody envisioned the Vancouver Canucks sitting in the NHL’s basement. DeBrusk is 29 years old and has five more years remaining after this season at a $5.5 million cap hit. More importantly, he owns a full no-movement clause (NMC). The fact that his name is even circulating in trade discussions tells you exactly how eager Vancouver’s management is to shake up their underperforming core.
In 56 games this season, DeBrusk has registered 13 goals and 15 assists for 28 points. While those aren’t world-beating numbers, it’s worth remembering what he did just last year in his first season with Vancouver, setting a career-high with 28 goals and logging 48 points over a full 82-game slate. As an NHL analyst, I can tell you that general managers don’t look at DeBrusk for regular-season padding; they look at his shoot-first profile. That exact style of play translates beautifully in the postseason when the ice shrinks and games tighten up.
Why the Boston Bruins Desperately Need DeBrusk’s Scoring
Boston needs another legitimate top-six finisher. The Bruins have great centers, but they lack that secondary sniper to take the defensive heat off David Pastrnak. What makes a return to Boston plausible is the context of the locker room. The bench situation that DeBrusk openly clashed with during his first stint is completely different now. The tension that led to trade requests in the past has evaporated, making a reunion far less awkward than it would have been even a year or two ago.
The main roadblock, of course, is DeBrusk himself. His NMC means he holds all the cards. Returning to a Boston market where he lived in the pressure-cooker of trade rumors for years isn’t automatically appealing. However, if the Bruins can sell him on a total reset, a firmly defined top-six role, and a legitimate playoff runway, my read on the situation is that he would strongly consider waiving his clause to chase a Cup.
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The post Why a Jake DeBrusk Return to the Boston Bruins Actually Makes Sense appeared first on NHL Trade Rumors.
