Sign-and-Trade
An alternative approach to the proposed acquisition of Geekie is one that would involve more direct communication between the front offices in Colorado and Boston and would also address the Nečas situation: a sign-and-trade. A sign-and-trade is exactly what it sounds like: a player is signed by one team and then traded to another team. The benefit to this is that the traded player now has a set contract that the receiving team won't have to worry about.
The Bruins could provide Geekie with a contract — one that would work for the Avs, too — and then immediately ship him to Colorado in a deal for Nečas (and likely a pick or a prospect). It wouldn't do much in terms of saving the Avs any money in the short-term; Geekie is due for a significant raise, which will put his figure closer to what Nečas makes now.
Nečas, however, is also due for a raise, and the Avs may not want to commit to him long-term, especially with Cale Makar needing an extension in a few seasons. If they can obtain Geekie at around $6.5mil for three or four seasons, it would be a great deal for both sides.
It would perhaps be easiest for the Avs to just trade Nečas to Boston in exchange for (alongside whatever else the Bruins send as a return package) an agreement from Bruins' GM Don Sweeney not to match an offer sheet for Geekie. This would be considered part of the trade, and the Avs would likely receive less in the trade itself. This, however, goes against section 26.2 of the NHL and NHLPA's collective bargaining agreement (CBA), which has stipulations against circumventions of league standards:
CBA 26.2 Undisclosed Terms and Revenues
"A Club (directly or indirectly through a "Club Actor," i.e., any owner, shareholder, Club Affiliated Entity, the NHL or third party acting at the behest of a Club) and a Player (directly or indirectly through a "Player Actor," i.e., his Certified Agent or any other individual, any entity, or the NHLPA, acting on behalf of the Player) may not, at any time, enter into undisclosed agreements of any kind, express or implied, oral or written, or promises, undertakings, representations, commitments, inducements, assurances of intent, or understandings of any kind involving consideration of any kind to be paid, furnished or made available or guaranteed to the Player, or Player Actor, by the Club or Club Actor either prior to, during, or after the term of the Player's SPC."
Additionally, an offer sheet cannot be used as part of a trade in the NHL, so there isn't an avenue forward there.
The most important question still unaddressed is whether or not the Bruins would even want Martin Nečas, but there's been plenty of buzz with the B's regarding the potential to acquire the Czech forward. On paper, it's an obvious fit.
The Bruins are no strangers to employing Czechian players; Just a few seasons ago, Boston had the highest number of Czech players in the entire NHL, and their second line was comprised entirely of Czechs: Pavel Zacha, David Krejčí, and David Pastrňák. If Nečas were to end up a Bruin, he would get the chance to slot in as the first-line center alongside Zacha and Pastrňák, which is an opportunity anyone would relish.
Pastrňák and Nečas played together at both the 2024 and 2025 IIHF World Championships, with Zacha joining them for the 2024 tournament. Additionally, all three players have already been selected for the preliminary roster of Czechia's 2026 Olympic roster, so there's certainly appeal for them to begin building chemistry together in the NHL before traveling to Italy for the Winter Olympics next year. Is the potential of this trio enough for the Bruins to consider parting with Geekie?
Regardless of what it would take to move Nečas out and to bring Geekie in — and regardless of how admittedly improbable a move like this would be — it would address a need for everyone involved: Boston would have a star that can compliment Pastrňák and Zacha, and Colorado wouldn't have to go into a second-consecutive season with the impending free agency of a core player looming. Nečas would get the chance to be a pivotal piece of a re-tooling team who can afford to pay him star-caliber salary, and Geekie would get his big payday and could play with one of the most electrifying offensive units in the entire NHL.
It comes down to whether or not two NHL teams are willing to try something unlike anything they've done before. It's unlikely, but it's not impossible.
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