Andre Gasseau was one of the Boston Bruins prospects who was playing college hockey with the Boston College Eagles this past season, giving fans visions of all of them eventually growing together and making an impact at the NHL level. However, Gasseau is now the second of the seven Bruins prospects to find a new home, potentially, after Oskar Jellvik's signing back home in Sweden.
Rumors were running rampant about Gasseau's future with the Bruins after he didn't sign an entry-level deal at the conclusion of his college career. While Gasseau isn't the type of prospect that fans are going to be overly upset about losing, he looked like he could have a decent future as a bottom-six player given his size and skill.
With the organization keeping quiet about the non-signing, Don Sweeney finally confirmed the rumors in a quote from the Boston Globe's Jim McBride.
"“In all likelihood we’ll find a trade opportunity for (rights to Andre Gasseau) between now and August""Don Sweeney
The Bruins will relinquish the rights to Gasseau after August 15th, which seems like a foregone conclusion now that he hasn't signed his entry-level deal yet. Instead of letting them expire, Sweeney is trying to be proactive in getting a deal for his rights, which at least wouldn't make the former seventh-round pick a total loss.
While getting a sixth or seventh-round pick for a former seventh-round pick in 2021 isn't the worst asset management given the stage the Bruins are in right now, it paints a worse picture about the state of the organization. If a player doesn't feel that his best course of development is joining a team in the city where he lived for the past four years, then that might tell you everything you need to know about how agents and players view Boston's developmental system.
Gasseau could've had an opportunity to play games for Providence down the stretch, but instead opted to end his season and find a different opportunity this offseason. After seeing some of the prospects pass by the wayside in the Bruins' AHL system, fans should be able to respect that decision.
