from Fluto Shinzawa of the Boston Globe,

Every team would like to have Eriksson on its roster. And keeping Eriksson is no guarantee for the Bruins. This is the wing’s final shot at a long-term payday. Eriksson, via agent J.P. Barry, will be seeking a maximum payout, both in term and salary.

The Bruins believe they have room to re-sign Eriksson. Next year, they will likely say goodbye to Talbot, Chris Kelly, Kevan Miller, and Jonas Gustavsson. They will be free of the $2.75 million in salary retained from trading Milan Lucic. They are not projected to carry an overage penalty like the approximate $969,000 they are carrying for exceeding last year’s cap.

These savings will give them plenty of cash to pay Eriksson the salary — he would be justified in asking for $6 million annually — he wants on an extension.

The question is term. If Sweeney can’t sell his colleagues in hockey operations on the logic of re-upping Eriksson, it will be because the wing asks for more years than the Bruins are willing to cede.

Eriksson has excellent hockey sense. He is as good with his stick as any player in the league. But it will do his employer no good if his wheels don’t put him in place to maximize his assets.

So as they did with Lucic, they will wheel Eriksson for assets prior to the Feb. 29 trade deadline before letting him walk. The concern is whether they can improve by trading the all-around wing. The Bruins are in a playoff position and are likely to stay among the East’s top eight with the current roster.

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