Yesterday, the Bruins decided to have their own pyrotechnic display when they traded former 1st round draft pick Tyler Seguin, Rich Peverley, and prospect Ryan Button to the Dallas Stars for Loui Eriksson and three prospects – Joe Morrow, Reilly Smith, and Matt Fraser.

Yea, girl.  That’s exactly what I said.

At first, I was confused and perplexed.  Did the Bruins really just give up their #2 draft pick and ship him off to the Lone Star State?

During the recent NHL Draft, I had a feeling that something might be brewing.  After Bruins’ GM Peter Chiarelli called him out,  you could tell that the organization wasn’t feeling Seguin and his utterly disappointing post-season performance.

Chiarelli called into question Seguin’s professionalism and work ethic – but what he was essentially saying is Tyler Seguin needed to stop being Tyler Seguin and start being more like Patrice Bergeron.

But no way did I actually think that the Bruins would trade away one of their most popular players so quickly.  I thought for sure that they give him a year to get his ish together, grow up a bit, and then go from there.

okay…so maybe I take that back…

After the initial shock wore off and the eyebrow crinkling ceased, I took to the interwebs to obtain the knowledge I needed to fully understand why something like this might happen.

What I’ve concluded is simple – it’s all about the benjamins.

Seguin is set to begin a six-year, $34.5 million contract next season.   Peverley is in the midst of a contract that carries an average annual value of $3.25 million through the end of the 2014-15 season.   Eriksson’s contract runs through end of 2015-16 season and has an average annual value of $4.25 million.

You know that WUYS don’t do no math but basically what I’ve been able to deduce using my fingers, toes, and abacus, is that the Bruins will save around $4 million in cap space.  With the salary cap decreasing next season, the Bruins needed to reduce salary to re-sign Tuukka and Bergeron, which let’s face it are a more integral part of the team’s success than Seguin.  Bruins also are in need of a winger with the departure of Horton and Jagr.  With this trade, they now have about $9 million to work with.

Even with addition of the 27 year-old Eriksson, the Bruins are still way light at wing.  I’d bet good money  they use some of that $9 mil surplus to sign a winger off of the free agent market.  Just a few names up for grabs – Ignila, Clarkson, Ryder, Clowe, Cleary.  It will just be a matter of finding the best fit, both financially and organizationally.  To play on this team, you have to be a certain kind of player.

Now while I understand why something like this happened, it doesn’t mean that particularly thrilled about it.  I feel like it is the Joe Thornton Conundrum all over again.

I like Seguin and I think he’s enormously talented, if a bit undisciplined.  Maturity takes time to develop.  Not all players are Bergeron and Landeskog who come into the league already acting like they’re 30.  I kind of have this feeling that Bruins are abandoning Seguin at a time when all he really might need is a swift kick in the ass and a dressing down by Cam Neely. Then maybe he’s wake up and pull it together.

On the other hand, maybe they have given Seguin that dressing down. Maybe they have given him that chance and still nothing changed.  As fans, we may never know the truth.

So for now, I wish Seguin the best of luck in Dallas and look forward to the first instagram photo of him wearing a cowboy hat.