Garnet Hathaway, Dmitry Orlov Traded to Bruins in Deal With Capitals, Wild

The Boston Bruins acquired forward Garnet Hathaway and defenseman Dmitry Orlov on Thursday in a three-team trade with the Washington Capitals and Minnesota Wild ahead of the NHL's March 3 deadline.

The Capitals acquired Craig Smith, a 2023 first-round pick, 2024 third-round pick and a 2025 second-round pick in the deal.

Washington initially traded Orlov to the Wild in exchange for forward Andrei Svetlakov. The Capitals retained half of the defenseman's salary.

The Wild then flipped Orlov to the Bruins for a 2023 fifth-round pick. Minnesota retained 25 percent of Orlov's remaining salary in that deal.

Hathaway is in the final year of a four-year, $6 million deal valued at $1.5 million annually.

The 31-year-old, who is a native of Kennebunkport, Maine, had been with the Capitals since 2019 after beginning his career with the Calgary Flames in 2015. Through 59 games this season, the veteran winger has notched nine goals and seven assists, including a game-winning tally against the Bruins on Feb. 11.

Hathaway, a career bottom-six player, has notched 54 goals and 62 assists in 432 games across eight seasons. While he's not known for scoring, his grit and intensity are exactly what Boston needs entering the postseason.

With the departure of Smith, Hathaway figures to slot in on either Boston's third or fourth line. His placement in the lineup will depend on whether head coach Jim Montgomery wants to break up the fourth line of A.J. Greer, Trent Frederic and Nick Foligno, which has been impressive this season.

If Hathaway is placed on the third line, he'd slot in alongside Charlie Coyle and Taylor Hall. If he's placed on the fourth line, it's possible Foligno would move up to play alongside that duo.

As for Orlov, he's in the final year of a six-year, $30.6 million contract worth $5.1 million annually. He had a modified no-trade clause on his contract, per CapFriendly, which means Boston was on his list of teams that he could be moved to.

The 31-year-old has notched three goals and 16 assists in 43 games with Washington this season. He had spent his entire 11-year career with the Capitals, which selected him in the second round of the 2009 draft.

Through 686 games with the Capitals, Orlov notched 60 goals and 256 assists. He boasts a career 104 plus/minus rating and was a member of Washington's 2018 Stanley Cup-winning team.

Boston had been reported to be in the market for a left side defenseman this winter and had even been linked to Arizona Coyotes' Jakob Chychrun and Columbus Blue Jackets' Vladislav Gavrikov.

The move for Orlov, a left defenseman, might rule out a trade for either of those players.

It's unclear where Orlov would slot in on Boston's defensive unit, though he was on Washington's top defensive pairing alongside Trevor van Riemsdyk this season.

Matt Grzelcyk is currently on the left side of Boston's top defensive pair with Charlie McAvoy. Hampus Lindholm and Derek Forbort round out the franchise's left-side defensive unit. Forbort could be forced out of the lineup following the Orlov acquisition.

The Bruins are in action on Thursday night against the Seattle Kraken and have games against the Vancouver Canucks, Edmonton Oilers and Calgary Flames coming up before returning to Boston on March 2.

It's reasonable to believe Hathaway and Orlov will join the Bruins on their current road trip, but it's unclear when they will make their debuts.