As he watched his team scratch and claw for playoff positioning Wednesday night against the Rangers, Bruins general manager Don Sweeney clung to some optimism in a season where that has been in short supply.
Speaking on the TNT broadcast during the matchup at Madison Square Garden, Sweeney sounded like an executive hoping to avoid a reality where the Bruins plant a “For Sale” sign ahead of the trade deadline.
It’s uncharted territory for Sweeney, who — beyond an offseason sell-off of assets such as Milan Lucic and Dougie Hamilton in 2015 — has not had to pivot from the franchise’s win-now window.