Boston's interest in Montreal's defenseman exposes an obvious roster problem

Struble shoots left, and so does nearly every defenseman Don Sweeney already struggles to slot.

Hampus Lindholm, Nikita Zadorov, Mason Lohrei and Jonathan Aspirot all shoot left. Lohrei finished last spring in the press box, scratched for the final three playoff games.

Marco D'Amico first reported Boston's interest last fall, and he has tracked Struble's contract file closely, including the arbitration hearing Montreal avoided last summer.

Sweeney's summer told a different story. He sent a second-round pick and a conditional third to the New York Rangers for Will Borgen, then signed Connor Clifton in free agency, both right shots.

Boston also opens the season without Charlie McAvoy, suspended six games for slashing Zach Benson in Game 6 against Buffalo. That opening is on the right, and a left-shot third-pair defenseman does not fill it.

Marco Sturm would be adding a seventh option to a group he already cannot fit into six spots.

Boston needs a top-pair answer beside McAvoy, not another third-pair defender who shoots the same way as the ones being scratched.

Montreal's crowd is left-handed too, with Lane Hutson, Kaiden Guhle, Mike Matheson and Arber Xhekaj all shooting the same way.

Struble turns 25 in September and is coming off 12 points in 59 games.

He carries a $1,412,500 cap hit and reaches restricted free agency next summer, which is when Kent Hughes actually has to decide.

Camp matters only because of waivers. David Reinbacher can move between Montreal and Laval freely, while Struble would have to clear waivers first.

That asymmetry protects Struble more than it threatens him, because Martin St-Louis can send the prospect down at no cost.

Sweeney's interest turns real only inside a bigger trade, the way the Pavel Zacha chatter framed it.

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