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Chiarelli On Toucher & Rich: Won't Make Trade For Shock Value

BOSTON (CBS) - Peter Chiarelli has been hitting the phones recently trying to see if he can improve his struggling Boston Bruins.

But the B's general manager said he is not going to make a trade just for the shock value.

"I don't try to shake up the roster by going out there to just make a trade," Chiarelli told 98.5 The Sports Hub's Toucher and Rich on Wednesday. "If I'm going to make I trade I'm going to add, add and subtract. It's going to be the right move, not just for shock value. I'm not any closer to doing anything, but our place has forced me to hit the phones a little harder."

"Part of my job is to see what players are available when things aren't going as well as you would expect. I would increase my calls to other managers to get a gauge on the market. "

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For now, Chiarelli is not finding much out on the market with the season being just a month old.

"It's early. There aren't as many teams looking to make a trade. There are more players available later on. Prices generally go up later. But I'm not closing in on anything. I just picked up the phone for the first time with a lot of GMs I haven't spoken with in a while."

While he looks to improve his 4-7 team, Chiarelli also admitted there is a bit of loyalty towards the team that won the Stanley Cup just four months ago.

"There is fondness, loyalty, appreciation, respect," he said. "This past summer we won the cup, so you have a roster that you've won with... It's hard to turn the page to make trades; I owe the team some loyalty and I owe the team some respect. But I also am the manager so I have to look at ways to improve the roster day-to-day, month-to-month, year-to-year."

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Luckily, the Bruins snapped their three-game losing streak with a 5-3 win over the Ottawa Senators Tuesday night, an effort their GM sees as their best yet.

"We've been struggling and of course a win and a win at home is the right tonic," he said. "We're trying to find our game. I haven't minded our compete level. I'm not satisfied with it. But last night I liked our compete level for the first or second time this season. It's a good step."

That includes struggling center David Krecji, who has just one point in eight games season. Krejci did not show up on the stat sheet in Tuesday night's win, but Chiarelli is pleased with what he saw on the ice.

"We've got a lot of guys that have struggled on and off during the stretch. David is one of them, but in the last two games I feel he's picking up his game quite nicely," said Chiarelli.

Still, it will take a few more convincing wins in a row to convince Chiarelli his Bruins have turned the corner for good and returned to their consistency of 2010-11.

"You're going to need to see it a couple more times. I would say our compete level prior to last night was 95-percent; where it should be. If it was 75-percent I'd be really concerned. I'm not that I'm saying I'm not concerned. We'll need a consistent game after this one, probably two or three more."

Listen to Peter Chiarelli's interview in it's entirety, including his thoughts on new Bruins Joe Corvo and Benoit Pouliot.

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