The volcano was going to erupt sooner or later in Boston, and the Bruins didn’t have to wait until Friday’s draft to stir things up. The team shipped frustrating defenseman Dennis Wideman, the 15th overall pick, and their third-rounder in 2011 to the Panthers in exchange for forwards Nathan Horton and Gregory Campbell. 

This wasn’t about the Bruins wanting to add offense or taking an undesirable contract off the Panthers’ hands (paws? Pass the corn). This was about the Bruins being enamored with what Nathan Horton could do playing to the right of Marc Savard. It had to be. The trade just doesn’t make any sense otherwise. 

“Nathan is a big powerful young man,” Chiarelli said following the trade on Tuesday. “He is 25 years old and has scored over 30 goals once and over 20 goals in five consecutive seasons. He is a shooter who plays a power game.”

At first glance, the Bruins wouldn’t have made this deal if Chiarelli and Cam Neely expected 20 goals out of him. No way. They had to have seen something in the underachieving years at Florida, whether at center or right wing, that made them think they could turn this kid into something special. 

Horton will in all likelihood play wing in Boston. He spent the last two years out of position at center and called himself a natural winger when speaking to the media following the trade on Tuesday. Given the Bruins plethora of centers, he said, coming to team that will use him at wing is “perfect.” 

You’d have to think the stars had better align offensively with Horton. He seemed well aware that his numbers haven’t exactly been typical of a top-three pick (third overall, 2003), but he also hinted at his playoff-less experience in Florida stunting his growth as a player.

“Not to say anything bad about the organization,” Horton said, “but I’ve had five coaches since I’ve been there in the seven years.” 

Such an assertion is fair enough. Now that he’s in Boston however, he will need to prove on a team with very big expectations that he will contribute more than whomever the Bruins could have gotten with the first-rounder lost in the deal. He’s fine with that, and he’s willing to put the pressure on himself.

"Definitely," Horton said when asked if he’s aiming for a 30-goal season to prove the Bruins right. "That's what my goal is and I think it's definitely reachable. I'm going to try my best and I'm very excited to wear the Bruins crest on my chest.”

The Dennis Wideman thing is what it is. He was nowhere near as bad as fans made him out to be in Boston, but after a disappointing season one could imagine that neither party was satisfied and both sides felt a move would be in everyone’s best interest.

“Dennis had a terrific three years in Boston,” Chiarelli said following the trade. “He hit a couple of bumps along the way this past year. This happens sometimes with skill players and their confidence. He rebounded to be one of our best players in the stretch run and in the playoffs. He is a clutch competitor and is one of the best passers in the game. I wish Dennis the best of luck in Florida.”

The moving of Wideman is not what should have Bruins fans perplexed. Many, including this writer, felt the Bruins would trade up using the 15th overall pick in order to get a top defenseman in Cam Fowler. Now, in addition to losing their chance at Fowler, the team is without one of its top defensemen. Common logic would suggest the team was pretty confident in their chances of re-signing 26-year-old free agent Johnny Boychuk.

“We want to improve our team now, and we want to improve our team in the short term and the long term, so it gives us a lot of flexibility,” Chiarelli said Monday morning, a day before making the trade. “If we do make a deal involving one of these picks — not our top pick — we’re going to make sure we end up with a good player.”

Apparently the Bruins got their man in Horton. Assuming he plays a wing to Savard, the 6-fotot-2, 229-pound Horton should give the Bruins another power forward in the Neely/Lucic/whomever mold. Campbell, who is the son of Bruins not-so-fan-favorite NHL Director of Hockey Pperations Colin Campbell, is more of a penalty-killer and less of an offensive presence. The 26-year-old, who said his time between center and wing have been split “50-50,” had a career-high 32 points (13 G) in the ’08-’09 season. 

It was the first shoe to drop to kick off a busy couple of weeks for the Bruins. Financially it didn’t help or hurt – Horton and Wideman’s cap hits are nearly a wash at $4 million and $3.97 million, respectively – but the Bruins can be sure people will be tracking the progress of the Panthers’ 15th overall pick if the production doesn’t come.