According to an ESPN report from James Murphy, the Bruins are “actively shopping” center Marc Savard despite this month’s news that his contract has been under investigation by the NHL.

“The investigation by the NHL definitely made teams back off from their interest in Savard, but the team is still open to trading him and trying to,” a source told Murphy.

The report adds that talks with teams have been “hampered” by a lack of cap space among teams throughout the league. Savard’s deal, a seven-year pact worth $28.5 million total, carries an annual cap hit of $4.007 million. The deal has been under investigation due to it’s being front-loaded salary-wise in an effort to water down the cap hit. Half of the deal’s money is paid out over the first two years, meaning extra years at less money make for more of a team-friendly deal.

The Bruins are just more than $3 million over the leagues $59.4 million salary cap, but will be given relief of $3.5 million as long as Marco Sturm is out. Once he returns, the team will need to make a move, and Savard as been viewed as a candidate to go.

The center hasn’t made any comments on the situation thus far to anyone around these parts, though he did tell the Ottawa Sun that he hasn’t liked the context in which his name has been brought up this summer.

“I was really focused on staying [in Boston] the rest of my career,” Savard told the paper. “To hear all this stuff this summer bothered me inside more than anything else.”

The cap situation and the arrival of second overall draft pick in center Tyler Seguin have been the primary perceived motivation factors for the team to move Savard, though one might question whether the league’s worst offense from a year ago can afford subtracting one of its best players.

In 41 games last season, Savard had 10 goals and 23 assists for 33 points. His regular season was cut short by a hit to the head from Penguins’ forward Matt Cooke on March 7.

It looks like anyone who fancies watching Sunday hockey on NBC will have to stick to the Rangers. The NHL has released its television schedule for the coming season and the hometown team isn’t exactly well-represented by the network. Here’s where you can find the Bruins in 2010-11 when they’re not on NESN.

VS. (all teams EST)

October 9 vs. Phoenix (Prague, Czech Republic), 6:00 p.m.
October 19 at Washington, 7:30 p.m.
November 17 at New York Rangers, 7:00 p.m.
November 22 at Tampa Bay, 7:30 p.m.
December 7 vs. Buffalo, 7:30 p.m.
December 20 vs. Anaheim, 7:30 p.m.
December 28 at Tampa Bay, 7:30 p.m.
January 10 at Pittsburgh, 7:30 p.m.
February 9, vs. Montreal, 7:00 p.m.
March 29 vs. Chicago, 7:30 p.m.
April 4 at New York Rangers, 7:30 p.m.

The following two games are NBC “flex” games that the network will have the option of airing:

February 13 at Detroit, TBD
April 10 at New Jersey, TBD

Bruins center Marc Savard has been popular this offseason. First there was the owners’ vote to penalize blindside hits to the head after his scary injury incurred from a Matt Cooke hit in March. Then came the recent news that the veteran’s seven-year, $28 million extension inked in December is under investigation by the NHL.

Despite the numerous reasons for the buzz surrounding Savard as he prepares for his fifth season in Boston, nothing compares to the months of speculation as to whether the Bruins would trade the center before he plays the first game of his new contract.

Savard has been quiet throughout everything. In fact, he hadn’t spoken at all in the midst of the rumors until recently, when he told the Ottawa Sun that he did indeed hear his name in numerous reports.

Now 33, Savard signed with the Bruins following a 2005-06 season in which the team finished 13th in the Eastern Conference with 74 points. With the Bruins having made it to the second round in each of the last two postseasons, it would seem like the worst time for any player with Stanley Cup aspirations to be shipped out.

“[The rumors] hurt me a little bit just because I went to Boston and I helped to build that team back up,” Savard told the paper. “I’ve really tried to work hard with the young guys and being a core player. I was really focused on staying there for the rest of my career. To hear all this stuff this summer bothered me inside more than anything else.”

Though there haven’t been concrete reports of specific trade talks regarding Savard, the logic that would lead one to such speculation consists of multiple factors, including the Bruins’ salary cap situation and the selection of wunderkind center Tyler Seguin with the second overall pick in June’s NHL draft.

In 782 career games, Savard has scored 205 goals and registered 491 assists for 696 points since coming into the league in 1999 with the Flames. Should his contract, which tacks on extra years at lower salaries to decrease his cap hit in an otherwise lucrative deal, be voided, Savard would be free to sign with any team. Speaking with the Sun, however, Savard indicated he’s simply staying in the present.

“Right now I’m a Bruin and that’s the way it is,” Savard said. “[But] it’s been tough.”

It’s been a long day for the Bruins, as news hit today that the NHL is indeed investigating center Marc Savard‘s seven-year, $28.05 million extension. The deal is perceived to be a “retirement contract,” as it pays the 33-year-old veteran half its money in the first two years of the deal and the other half over the following five years, which makes for a much more affordable $4.007 million cap hit.

Hours after the news broke, Bruins general manager Peter Chiarelli came out with a statement in which he said that the investigation has been ongoing and that he had met with NHL lawyers as recently as last week. With the Bruins’ cap situation up in the air and the team risking the loss of Savard, it might be a little too much to keep track of. Here’s what we’ve learned today, and what it might mean for the Bruins.

- This investigation has been going on for a while, and by a while, we mean since Savard’s contract was registered with the league in the first place way back in December. This means two things. First of all, this isn’t some new development for the Bruins. Maybe it was the magical cap relief they were expecting all along when they made signings that in total would put them more than $3 million over the salary cap (Savard’s cap hit is $4.007 million).

Secondly, it really dents the validity of rumors that the team was working on trades to move Savard out of town this offseason. In addition to there being zero concrete or validated reports of the Bruins and another team discussing a deal for the center, would it really make sense for the Bruins to shop a player knowing full well that the NHL was intent on voiding his deal? That would make the Bruins look awfully bad as a prospective trade partner for any team in the future.

- Savard is not the only one. The only reason the news came about was because Savard’s investigation was listed in the footnotes of arbiter Richard Bloch‘s rejection of Ilya Kovalchuk‘s appeal. In noting why the NHL was correct in rejecting the winger’s 17-year, $102 million contract with the Devils, Bloch also listed Marian Hossa, Chris Pronger and Roberto Luongo as players also being investigated.

- Yes, the Bruins have been looking to save money off the cap (they’re right up against it even when factoring in the $3.5 million they will get in relief to begin the season thanks to Marco Sturm‘s long-term injury status), but there’s no way Savard’s contract could be viewed as the one that’s weighing them down. In fact, the only reason this deal is being investigated is because it is so team-friendly that the NHL is trying to prevent deals like this from being made going forward.

Both Savard and Tim Thomas ($5 million cap hit in each of the next three seasons) have starred in offseason trade rumors, but their values to the team should not be overlooked. If the team does end up losing Savard for nothing, it would seemingly be a huge loss for the Bruins.

The Bruins have released a statement from general manager Peter Chiarelli regarding the league’s investigation of the seven-year, $28.05 million contract extension center Marc Savard signed with the team in December. Here’s what Chiarelli had to say.

“We are cooperating fully with the League in its investigation of the Marc Savard contract extension. The League informed us upon their registration of the contract on December 1, 2009 that they would be investigating the circumstances surrounding this contract. From that point on, they commenced their investigation and it has been ongoing since then. On August 4th, I met with two League appointed lawyers as part of the investigation. We will continue to cooperate with the League in any future investigative proceedings if necessary and we will have no further comment on the matter at this time.”

Savard will make nearly half of his contract’s money in the next two seasons, with the other half being spread out over the following five seasons. As a result, despite making $7 million per year in 2010-11 and 2011-12, he will have a cap hit of just $4.007 as a result of cap numbers in the NHL being determined by total money divided by years. If the deal is ruled as not being in compliance with the CBA, it will be voided and Savard will become an unrestricted free agent.

Bruins fans have wondered all offseason whether center Marc Savard would be back in Boston next season, but this probably isn’t what they had in mind. Savard, who signed a seven-year contract extension last season, could have his deal voided by the league as it is currently under investigation.

In rejecting Ilya Kovalchuk’s greivance with the league for deeming his 17-year, $102 million deal with the Devils bogus, arbiter Richard Bloch listed in the ruling’s footnotes that similar contracts that have already been registered with the league will be under investigation.

These so-called “retirement contracts” that have thrown the league for a loop are made when teams, in an effort to lower a player’s cap hit, tack on extra years at minimal dollars. A player’s cap number in the NHL is determined by dividing total dollars by the number of years, so even in guaranteeing more money in the early years (such as Savard’s $7 million in the first two seasons of the deal, which starts in the upcoming campaign) by adding years at low money, the hit is brought down dramatically (Savard’s cap hit will be $4.007).

Here is an excerpt from the ruling, which was leaked by Team 1200 radio in Ottowa:

It is true, as the Association observes, that the NHL has registered contracts with structures similar to the Kovalchuk SPC PA Exh. 8 reflects a list of 11 multi-year agreements, all of which involve players in their mid to late 30’s and early 40’s. Most of them reflect reasonably substantial “diveback” (salary reductions that extend over the “tails” of the Agreement). Of these, four such agreements, with players Chris Pronger, Marc Savard, Roberto Luongo, and Marian Hossa reflect provisions that are relatively more dramatic than the others. Each of these players will be 40 or over at the end of the contract term and each contract includes dramatic divebacks.

[...] The apparent purpose of this evidence is to suggest that the League’s concern is late blooming and/or inconsistent. Several responses are in order: First, while the contracts have, in fact, been registered, their structure has not escaped League notice: those SPCs are being investigated currently with at least the possibility of a subsequent withdrawal of the registration.

The Bruins are in a tight spot cap-wise, but in voiding the contract the NHL would let Savard become an unrestricted free agent, which would mean the Bruins would receive nothing for him. His cap hit is very team friendly given his production, and with the 2010-11 season Nathan Horton’s first in Boston, one would think the Bruins would like to at least catch a glimpse of what the two could do playing together.

Additionally, it could be interesting to see what would come of Savard being a free agent. He’s heard his name in trade rumors all summer and could be willing to test the market if he doesn’t feel he’ll be a top forward with the Bruins in future years.

In this offseason, just about anybody on the Bruins could speak to media members and have their hands full. After all, with big names added, bigger expectations for the upcoming season, and enormous questions about the roster, a Q and A could go on for hours if both sides have the time. Make that player a young star recovering from a playoff-ending injury and it’s no different.

Center David Krejci took some time to speak with reporters after signing autographs for youngsters at the first Bruins summer camp on Friday. He first fielded questions from kids who took part in the camp. After handling such toughies as, “What position do you play?” and, “Who broke your wrist?” Krejci put aside the youngster’s mispronunciation of Prague (“Praig” was a good one) and touched on his offseason, the state of the Bruins, and his excitement to be 100 percent again.

Krejci will have his final procedure for what is hopefully a long time next Friday when he has the screws removed from his right wrist, which was broken by Mike Richards in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Flyers. Though the first surgery on the wrist happened under unfortunate and unusual circumstances, Krejci is far less concerned with this one.

“They’re not even going to put me to sleep, they’re just going to make little holes in each side and just take the screws out and that’s how it is,” Krejci said.

The 24-year-old actually spoke rather highly of getting the screws removed, as their absence will leave just his large scar as the only evidence of the injury that shook the Bruins’ postseason.

“I can’t wait for [the surgery], because after it, a week or two after it, I’ll go on the ice and I’ll be able to start lifting heavy weights and I’m really excited for it,” Krejci said. “It’s been a long time and I can’t wait to go out there and get back on the ice and just back in the games and everything.”

While Krejci’s wrist has been a popular topic in the offseason, perhaps nothing in the last week or so has grabbed more attention more than the status of right wing and Krejci’s good friend Blake Wheeler. The two-year veteran filed earlier this month for arbitration, and by the looks of things, that’s where the process is headed.

Agent Matt Keator, who represents Wheeler and defensemen Mark Stuart and Zdeno Chara, told WEEI.com Friday that the only update on the situation is that the “tickets for Toronto [the site of his Tuesday arbitration hearing] are booked.” The two sides have not made progress in trying to avoid arbitration. Wheeler is currently on his honeymoon and therefore might not be hung up on his contractual status, but a question regarding whether Krejci and Wheeler have kept in touch yielded an interesting answer.

“We’re pretty good friends, and yeah, we talk once in a while. I just went to visit [him] a couple weeks ago. I went to his place in Minnesota, but I’m not going to say anything,” Krejci said. “We’re friends and whatever we talk [about], it’s just between me and him.”

While something is bound to happen with Wheeler, whether he be re-signed prior to Tuesday, granted or declined what the arbiter awards him. The same can’t be said for center Marc Savard, who has been the centerpiece of the rumor mill around Boston. With Tyler Seguin in tow, the Bruins have a surplus of high-level center icemen but not enough money to sign all 22 men for their roster (Seguin and Wheeler remain without contracts. What does Krejci make of the talk that’s out there?

“I have actually no idea. I have no idea, that’s all I can tell you,” Krejci said of Savard. “I don’t know what’s going to happen. I don’t know that he’s getting traded or whatever [rumors] say. I have no idea. He’s with us right now and that’s how it is.

“You want to see the best players, the good players, the good guys in the dressing room,” he added. “We want them to be back, and he belongs to one of these categories and you want him back.”

The one thing Krejci does seem to have the utmost confidence in is his return to the ice. Though he has yet to skate this offseason, he noted that he doesn’t skate during the offseason anyway. After his surgery he will head home to the Czech Republic for about a month and hit the ice as he gears up for training camp on September 17.

“I’ll go on the ice mid-August and my wrist might be a little weaker at the beginning of the camp, but we still have like two and a half months before the season starts, so I’ll be definitely 100 percent for the first game,” Krejci said.

This offseason has seen a lot go right for the Bruins, be it the offensive additions or the buildup to Prague. With Marco Sturm‘s knee expected to keep him out for a good portion of the season, health remains a factor that shouldn’t be overlooked. With Krejci back and ready to go, the team maintains offensive stability that came and went last season. Krejci just hopes the Bruins make it back to the big stage that is the NHL playoffs and have a better result this time.

“We had not many people [believing] in us [last season], but we kind of [snuck] in to the playoffs and I think we were playing great hockey. Whatever happened happened and, you know, these things happen,” Krejci said. “We’ve just got to learn from these mistakes and hopefully it’s going to get us stronger and next time we’ll be in that position where we’ll know what to do.”