Bruins Trade Seguin, Acquire Eriksson From Dallas Stars

Happy Independence Day, Boston Bruins fans. On July 4, Peter Chiarelli gave Tyler Seguin his version of independence, sending the talented but under producing forward to the Dallas Stars along with another recent under producer Rich Peverley, and minor league defenseman, Ryan Button for forward Loui Eriksson and three prospects.

The 21-year-old Seguin was the second pick in the 2010 NHL Draft. In 203 career games, he has 56 goals and 121 points. His best year was 2011-2012 when he scored 29 goals and 67 points. This past season he scored 16 goals and 32 points in the lockout-shortened, 48-game season.

One of the problems for Seguin was he had only one goal in 22 Stanley Cup Playoff games in this past playoff and ran into a lot of criticism from fans, media critics and, most importantly, his bosses.

Eriksson, who turns 28 this month, played in all 48 games, potted 12 goals and 29 points in 48 games for Dallas. He was an All Star last year and is considered one of the top defensive wings in the NHL. (How many of those does one team need?) The Bruins do need scoring up front, and Eriksson has netted 26 or more goals the last three campaigns.

First impression is that both teams did OK and, as with any trade, time will tell. Bruins have salary cap problems, and New Dallas General Manager Jim Nill wants to put his own stamp on his new team. However, the writing was on the wall for Tyler Seguin when this Bruins playoff year ended as he became polarizing when he could put the puck in the net, scoring just one goal in 22 playoff games. What really was probably the biggest problem was his maturity, or lack thereof.

During his tenure with the Boston Club, there were countless reports of Seguin being out late during the road trip to Toronto when the Bruins were playing the Leafs in the first round, prompting a meeting about his commitment to the team. Seguin did not play well at all in the Leafs series.

At the NHL draft last week, that and more incidents during the regular season prompted Peter Chiarelli to say that "he needs to become more of a professional."

Rumors were circulating at the draft that Seguin would be traded that day to the Calgary Flames, but that deal never materialized.

The Bruins' tight salary cap situation and Seguin's partying no doubt led the team to keep pursuing deals for the young talent and that deal came to fruition on the Fourth of July.