The Expansion Draft and NHL Entry Draft have come and gone, but the summer time period known as silly season continues.

As the first day of free agency approaches, Don Sweeney still has a couple of holes to fill. One is a top-four left shot defenseman. The other, a top-six left winger to play alongside David Krejci.

One of the top names entering the market – albeit a right shot blue-liner – is Kevin Shattenkirk. On Tuesday, NBCSN’s Pierre Maguire went on TSN radio in Canada with this nugget on the former Boston University standout.

Pierre McQuire on TSN Radio tonight said he thinks Shattenkirk is going to end up with the Bruins. #Bruins

— Bruins Network (@BruinsNetwork) June 27, 2017

Shattenkirk to the Bruins is a pipedream that might have made sense a few years ago if he were available. It makes little to no sense now.

Sure, Shattenkirk would be an upgrade on the right side over Kevan Miller and Adam McQuaid. A right side trio of Shattenkirk, Brandon Carlo and Charlie McAvoy would give the Black and Gold a little stability on one side of the back end. But that will have to come at a hefty price, likely in the $7 million range for the 2007 first round pick, especially after tallying a career-high 56 points in his stops in St. Louis and Washington during the 2016-17 season.

The salary alone would put the Black and Gold in a brutal spot to re-sign David Pastrnak following his career year. Regardless of whether he signs a bridge or long-term contract, Pastrnak will likely have a cap hit of $6 million.

Sweeney and company have a little over $12 million left in cap space after re-signing Noel Acciari to a two-year contract on Wednesday (with a cap hit of $725K). Unless they can package a player like David Krejci ($7.25 million per), David Backes ($6 million), Matt Beleskey ($3.8 million) or even Miller ($2.75 million) or McQuaid ($2.5 million), Sweeney would be wise to let Shattenkirk go somewhere else, let alone explore the free agent market after his previous July 1 encounters.

Outside of Shattenkirk, the list of blue-liners hitting the free agent market is not overly impressive. The Bruins have spoken with Trevor Daley according to Steve Conroy of the Boston Herald. Perhaps Sweeney will also talk with Karl Alzner, Shattenkirk’s teammate in Washington. Both fit the bill of a left shot defenseman that the Bruins need, but at age 33 and 28, respectively, it’s fair to question whether Daley or Alzner are worthy of top four minutes, especially given the B’s prospect pool on the back end.

Following a rough postseason with the Capitals that resulted in yet another disappointing early exit at the hands of the Penguins, one has to wonder if Shattenkirk’s best days were left in St. Louis. The veteran only tallied 20 or more minutes of ice time in two of the Caps 13 playoff contests – both coming in their first two games against the Maple Leafs. With just one goal and five assists in 2017, and a handful of other average postseason performances, is Shattenkirk someone who can really help the Bruins blue-line get over the top?

Sometimes, the best moves are the ones that aren’t made. The Bruins have McAvoy and Carlo in the fold on the back end. Ditto for Pastrnak whenever he signs his new contract.

Given their current crop of young talent and a solid prospect pool, Sweeney would be wise to stay away from Shattenkirk come the first day of free agency on Saturday.