Rumor: Zdeno Chara not the only free agent defenseman the Bruins have interest in.

The Boston Bruins appear to be in something of a holding pattern right now with their offseason seemingly all wrapped up with the possible exception of veteran defenseman Zdeno Chara who has yet to make a decision on whether or not he will return for another NHL season. 

Chara, who will turn 44 during the course of the upcoming regular season, Is at the tail end of his career and as an unrestricted free agent has the freedom to go anywhere he chooses in theory. The belief however is that Chara is currently waiting to see how the regular season schedule will shape out for the Bruins before making a decision on a return, with presumably an amenable schedule resulting in him re-signing while a not so favorable schedule will likely lead to his retirement. 

This leaves the Bruins in something of a tough spot especially when you consider the fact that the Bruins have already lost veteran defenseman Torey Krug to free agency in this offseason. If Chara opts out of playing another season with the Bruins it will leave their defense corps severely depleted and perhaps it is for this reason that there are now rumblings of the Bruins targeting other defensemen on the free agent market. 

According to a report from The Fourth Period's David Pagnotta, the Bruins are reportedly now among a number of teams that have expressed interest in unrestricted free agent defenseman Ben Hutton. Although best known as a defenseman for the Vancouver Canucks, where he spent the majority of his NHL career thus far, Hutton is coming off a 65 game season as a member of the Los Angeles Kings in which he recorded 4 goals and 12 assists for a combined 16 points and a plus minus of +5 on the season.

It is unclear which other teams may have interest in Hutton at this time, however Pagnotta reports that the Oilers were among that group. That may have changed on Saturday with the signing of defenseman Slater Koekkoek by general manager Ken Holland, although that is only speculation on my part at this time. 

This would be a clear attempt on the part of the Bruins to strengthen the left side of their blue line, and it may be a sign that they are not 100% comfortable moving forward with John Moore and Jeremy Lauzon as their second and third option on that side of their defense.