Summer Synopsis: Boston Bruins

With the regular season now upon us, the bulk of the heavy lifting has been done from a roster perspective.  Most unrestricted free agents have found new homes, the arbitration period has come and gone, and the trade market has cooled.  Accordingly, it’s a good time to take a look at what each team accomplished over the offseason.  Next up is a look at the Boston Bruins.

The Bruins took a massive step back last season after being a powerhouse regular team in recent seasons. They moved on from several tenured veterans at the NHL Trade Deadline, and it showed as they fell down the Eastern Conference standings. This season, the team entered the regular season with their lowest expectations they’ve had in at least a decade. That being said, they do still have plenty of capable veterans on the team and should be able to compete on most nights, but likely don’t have the roster to make a significant push in the Eastern Conference.

Draft

1-7 – C James Hagens, Boston College (NCAA)
2-51 – C William Moore, U.S. National U18 Team (NTDP)
2-61 – D Liam Pettersson, Växjö Lakers J20 (J20 Nationell)
3-79 – F Cooper Simpson, Shakopee High (USHS-MN)
4-100 – D Vashek Blanár, Troja-Ljungby J18 (J18 Region)
5-133 – F Cole Chandler, Shawinigan (QMJHL)
6-165 – C Kirill Yemelyanov, Loko Yaroslavl (MHL)

With the seventh overall pick, the Bruins chose Hagens from Boston College. The Hauppauge, New York native is a highly elusive center who uses his agility to vary speeds, change directions, create space, evade defenders, and generate scoring chances for himself and his teammates. Hagens will contribute offensively and should be able to use his dynamic skating to lead a line and operate on the power play.

Physically, Hagens is undersized, and concerns have been raised about his size and strength. Some people wonder if his lack of size could limit his potential, but given his skating ability and game sense, he should be able to compensate for any skill deficiencies.

Moore is another center who will come up through Boston College and is more of an in-your-face type of player than Hagens. Moore prefers a straight-line game and will crash the net, acting as both a shooter and a setup man. Unlike Hagens, concerns exist about Moore’s skating and his ability to play the north-south game due to his lack of acceleration. Moore has a long way to go to reach his potential and will likely spend at least a few seasons at Boston College, but he represents a gamble—a draft pick with a very high ceiling given his size and offensive skills. His path to the NHL depends on his improving his skating and speed.

Later in the second round, the Bruins selected Pettersson, a puck-moving defenseman out of Sweden. Pettersson transitions the puck well and can skate or pass it out of the defensive zone to create a switchover from defense to offense. There are concerns about his defensive work and his ability to handle the physicality of the NHL game. Pettersson is 6’2” but just 170 lbs, which means he will likely need to fill out quite a bit to handle the rigours of the NHL forecheck.

The Bruins rolled the dice with their third-round pick, picking a risky prospect with a high ceiling in Simpson. The Shakopee, Minnesota, native has all the tools of a raw goalscorer, using his puck-handling in traffic to create deception, along with a quick release that can give goaltenders fits. His production at the high school level has been off the charts (49 goals and 34 assists in 31 games), but there are question marks about whether it will translate to higher levels of hockey. Simpson will need to improve his play away from the puck if he hopes to ascend to the NHL, as well as his overall conditioning. However, he represents a pick that could develop into a top-nine winger, and as a third-round pick, it would be a win for the Bruins.

Trade Acquisitions

F Viktor Arvidsson (from Edmonton)
D Victor Soderstrom (from Chicago)

The Bruins grabbed Arvidsson at a low cost after his struggles last season in Edmonton. The 32-year-old has a strong history as a productive offensive player, but he struggled last year after his usage decreased. Arvidsson is only two seasons removed from scoring 26 goals and 33 assists in 77 games, which would be excellent production at his current price of $4MM for this season. However, if he repeats last year’s pace, it won’t be a good deal, but since he’s only signed for this year, it’s not the end of the world. At worst, Arvidsson can be a trade asset at the deadline for the Bruins, or if he really struggles, they can let him go at the end of the season after only having invested a fifth-round pick. But if Arvidsson regains his form, he could help them push for a playoff spot or recover some assets if the team isn’t in contention.

UFA Signings

D Jonathan Aspirot (one year, $775K)*
RW Matej Blumel (one year, $875K)
C Patrick Brown (one year, $775K)*^
D Michael Callahan (one year, $775K)*^
G Michael Dipietro (two years, $1.625MM)^
F Michael Eyssimont (two years, $2.9MM)
D Jordan Harris (one year, $825K)
LW Tanner Jeannot (five years, $17MM)
D Henri Jokiharju (three years, $9MM)^
F Sean Kuraly (two years, $3.7MM)
C Alex Steeves (one year, $850K)
LW Riley Tufte (one year, $775K)*

*-denotes two-way contract
^-denotes re-signing

The Bruins spent heavily in free agency during the summer of 2024, signing forward Elias Lindholm and defenseman Nikita Zadorov to costly long-term deals. Both of these contracts are now over a year old, and it’s fair to say they haven’t panned out as hoped. This offseason, Boston opted for a more cautious approach, adding a few bottom-six forwards and a couple of defensemen.

The Bruins’ significant addition was Jeannot, who has garnered a lot of mileage out of one decent season, signing a lucrative long-term deal worth $3.4MM per year. The 28-year-old had 24 goals and 41 points in 2021-22 but hasn’t topped seven goals or 18 points in any season since. Jeannot plays a fairly simple game, doesn’t do much with the puck, and hits a lot. His forechecking is solid, as is his work in front of the net, battling for position to create deflections, but beyond that, he doesn’t do much and probably won’t live up to his five-year deal.

Kuraly was a low-profile signing in Boston who plays a similar game to Jeannot but with much less physicality. Kuraly takes a low-event approach and doesn’t generate much offense or lead the play, but he is a reliable fourth-line defensive center who can contribute 20-30 points. Boston may actually be a good fit for Kuraly, as he is a solid penalty killer, has no problem throwing his body around, and should endear himself to Bruins fans with his play.

RFA Re-Signings

C John Beecher (one year, $900K)
C John Farinacci  (one year, $775K)*
C Morgan Geekie (six years, $33MM)
C Marat Khusnutdinov (two years, $1.85MM)
D Mason Lohrei (two years, $6.4MM)
C Georgii Merkulov (one year, $775K)*
D Victor Soderstrom (one year, $775K)*

*-denotes two-way contract

Locking up Geekie was a significant move for the Bruins this summer, especially since the 27-year-old was coming off a 33-goal season. Geekie had never scored more than 17 goals before last year, and he probably won’t shoot 22% regularly. However, given his track record as a middle-six forward, he should still provide value at $5.5MM annually. The risk for Boston is that if he reverts to an 11-13% shooter, which wouldn’t be an ideal value for his contract.

Lohrei plays a high-motor game, jumping into transition and moving the puck around the ice easily. He isn’t as talented as Bowen Byram of the Buffalo Sabres, but, like Byram, Lohrei’s skills are very noticeable. However, his on-ice results don’t quite match the eye test. As mentioned earlier, Lohrei moves around the ice with ease, is very active in transition, and can pass well, but none of that has yet translated into positive results, which is puzzling. It could also mean that Lohrei is ready for a breakout, which would be great news for Bruins’ management.

Departures

G Brandon Bussi (signed in Florida, one year $775K)*
F Cole Koepke (signed in Winnipeg, one year $1MM)
F Jakub Lauko (signed in Czechia)
F Vinni Lettieri (signed in Toronto, one year $775K)
D Ian Mitchell (signed in Detroit, one year $775K)
F Tyler Pitlick (signed in Minnesota, two years, $1.55MM)*
D Parker Wotherspoon (signed in Pittsburgh, two years, $2MM)

*-denotes two-way contract

The Bruins’ significant roster losses occurred before the NHL Trade Deadline, as the team shipped out players like Brad Marchand, Charlie Coyle, Brandon Carlo, and a few others. It was a clear signal that they were punting on the season, leaving very few players to depart in the off-season.

Wotherspoon arguably represents the most significant loss off the roster for Boston and has been a great fit in Pittsburgh so far, playing quite a bit on the Penguins’ second pairing alongside Erik Karlsson. The 28-year-old has been excellent so far, surpassing expectations even as he’s been asked to take on more heavy lifting. Wotherspoon has never played more than 55 NHL games in a season, which should make his usage going forward worth watching in Pittsburgh. Wotherspoon could be a case of a player not getting opportunities in Boston and finding a fit elsewhere, but it’s hard to assess given this season’s small sample size.

Koepke might be another player who thrives elsewhere after signing a one-year deal in Winnipeg. He isn’t known for his analytics and won’t put up many points, but he plays a low-event game and is dependable defensively. He brought a physical presence that the Bruins will miss in their bottom six, but given the lack of scoring from their bottom two lines, they didn’t really need to keep another forward who struggles to produce points.

Salary Cap Outlook

The Bruins currently have just over $1.7MM in cap space this season. There is no denying they have some very bloated contracts on the books right now, most of which are untradable at the moment. The Bruins are heavily relying on some of these overpriced veterans to bounce back and meet their hefty contracts. If they don’t, things could get ugly for Boston as they lack the long-term cap space to cover potential gaps. Next summer, Boston has 18 players signed and just shy of $20MM available in cap space, which could give them a chance to make one or two key additions. However, considering their recent struggles in free agency, they might be cautious about overpaying again.

Key Questions

Can Jeremy Swayman get back to form?

Swayman’s play last year fell short of expectations for him and the Bruins after signing a significant contract extension. It was his first season in Boston without Linus Ullmark, who was traded to Ottawa in the summer of 2024. Swayman missed the start of the season due to a contract holdout and only signed his eight-year, $66MM deal in early October, missing just one game. However, he missed all of training camp, and it showed in his performance last season, as he posted the worst stats of his career. Now, as he approaches 27, he’s hoping to rebound, along with the Bruins, whose season could depend on Swayman’s play.

Do they have enough depth scoring?

Boston is very fortunate to have David Pastrňák on their roster, especially last year when he scored 106 points, accounting for roughly 47% of the Bruins’ offense. The Bruins lack depth offensively, and while Pastrňák can carry a large share of the scoring, he can’t do it all alone. Boston has capable forwards in their top six, but their bottom two lines aren’t exactly overflowing with offensive talent, which could become a problem if they don’t have enough scoring to compete.

Can they compete for a playoff spot?

If Boston played in a weaker division, this answer could potentially be yes, but competing in the Atlantic Division makes it a struggle just to qualify as a wild-card team. Boston isn’t a terrible team, but it’s hard to imagine them finishing ahead of Florida, Toronto, Montreal, Tampa Bay, or Ottawa. That would place them sixth at best, and it’s fair to wonder if the Bruins are even better than Detroit, with whom they also compete in their division. Given the intense competition this season, it’s unlikely Boston makes the playoffs, but that’s why they play the games.