Among the many stories from the NHL draft weekend was the news that Tim Thomas and his agent, Bill Zito, had been granted permission from Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli to speak with other teams. This development naturally opened up a firestorm of speculation and rumors that Thomas wants out of town.
Chiarelli, however, took time on Saturday to be as clear as he could that Thomas in no way has demanded a trade. He hasn't actively sought one out, for that matter.
"I want to set the record straight on that," Chiarelli was quoted as saying in the Boston Herald. "Tim has never asked to be traded. Tim wants to be a Boston Bruin. What I did was talk to Bill Zito at some point after the season and said, 'Bill, look, we're in position here where some teams will come forward and ask about Tim. At some point, if deals become realistic, you and I have to work together [with] Tim and his family and have everything transparent. Let me give you an e-mail giving you permission to talk to teams if they call you.' That's all there was. There is no overt effort to trade him, and there isn't any request by Tim. He wants to be a Boston Bruin."
Chiarelli's statement is in accord with Zito's from Friday, when the agent said he was not "pounding the pavement looking for a team" and that Chiarelli had not brought any specific trade requests to Thomas.
