Boston Bruins
“I have some work to do, to continue to add to our club, and a little bit of that is based on what’s the internal growth.”
The Celtics might have snagged most of the headlines in Boston on Wednesday with their lone trade of the afternoon.
But, Don Sweeney and the Bruins were also busy on the first day of NHL free agency, making several signings while orchestrating a pair of separate deals with the Rangers.
Boston dealt goalie Joonas Korpisalo to New York primarily for cap relief and relinquished a pair of draft picks for Blueshirts D-man Will Borgen. After bolstering their firepower up front by trading for JJ Peterka last weekend, Boston honed in on its D corps in free agency, signing Connor Clifton and re-upping Jordan Harris.
The Bruins still have some flexibility with their cap space ($5.3 million) to go along with a glut of skaters who likely need to be cut down via trade in the coming weeks.
But, did Boston do enough to move the needle in a cutthroat Atlantic Division?
In years past, the NHL offseason usually tended to start and stop on July 1, with weeks of free-agent speculation, trade whispers, and other projected roster tweaks all manifesting into a frenzied 24 hours before agents, execs, and players retired to their lakeside cabins for the rest of the summer.
Of course, this NHL offseason has been anything but normal — with empowered players augmenting rosters and a soaring salary cap turning trades into the preferred transaction this summer.
And, in a rapidly evolving NHL landscape, Sweeney and the Bruins opted to take a more conservative route on Wednesday as they try to chart the best path back to contention.
No Darnell Nurse trade — at least not to the Bruins. No high-priced contract doled out to a player like Jacob Trouba (four years, $8.25 million annual cap hit), Rasmus Andersson (seven years, $8.5 million cap hit), or Mason Marchment (five years, $6.75 million cap hit).
The Bruins answered some of their offseason mandates of skill and speed by trading for Utah Mammoth winger JJ Peterka on Friday. But, Wednesday’s moves were rooted more in value and flexibility for a club looking to build off of last year’s brief playoff appearance and stave off the dangers of regression.
Whereas a fleet-footed winger like Peterka stands as a high-octane replacement for Viktor Arvidsson (who signed a two-year, $10 million contract in Detroit), Borgen — acquired for a 2027 second-rounder and a 2028 conditional third-round selection — should be an upgrade over Andrew Peeke as a second-pairing regular on the right side.
Even Clifton could carve out a solid role as Boston’s third-pairing regular over Henri Jokiharju.
All things considered, the case can be made that the Bruins are better than they were just a few weeks ago, with the proven production of core players like David Pastrnak and Jeremy Swayman — coupled with the growth of youngsters like Fraser Minten and James Hagens — helping Boston take a step forward.
But, did Boston’s moves on Wednesday put them in the clear of staying in front during the ongoing arms race in the East? Probably not — especially with Florida and potentially Washington back in the playoff picture.
If injuries sprout up or Boston’s star players take a step back, it’s asking a lot for the players Boston added on Wednesday — coupled with unproven youngsters — to right the ship for this team.
But, the Bruins may still have another move or two to make before opening camp in September.
The signings/trades of Clifton, Borgen, and Harris, coupled with Boston not dealing away either Jokiharju or Mason Lohrei, is a curious decision. Something’s got to give in Boston’s blue line, as the Bruins can’t open next year with over $6-7 million of cap space pushed up to the ninth floor as scratches.
“There easily could be,” Sweeney said of Boston potentially moving another defenseman. “Depending on where other teams sit and the conversations I’ve had, Charlie’s [McAvoy] not playing the first six games [due to suspension].
“You just never know between now and when we start, and injuries, we just, it was an area we told you guys that we’re going to address, and that’s exactly what we tried to do.”
There are other avenues Boston can take. A young blueliner like Lohrei or even a middle-six wing on an expiring contract like Casey Mittelstadt could hold some trade appeal; such a move could help Boston clear even more cap space.
As much as Boston values its prospects, Sweeney and Co. could be lurking for the next potential deal to significantly bolster their roster — as was the case with Peterka.
That cap space could be used proactively to extend younger players like Minten and Marat Khusnutdinov, both of whom Sweeney expressed interest in re-upping in the near future.
Fair to say, the Bruins still have a lot of work to do.
For now, it seems as though the path they’ve chosen is to try and tread water and stay competitive — without overextending themselves with poor contracts (at least, not adding another burdensome deal like Elias Lindholm’s) — while waiting for that next wave of young talent to arrive and potentially push this core to another level
That requires a lot of patience for the Bruins, one that could potentially backfire if Boston’s slow-and-steady approach gives way to some regression next season.
Still, it feels like another shoe has to drop with this crowded Bruins roster at this stage of the offseason.
“I have some work to do, to continue to add to our club, and a little bit of that is based on what’s the internal growth, you know? … I think we’re back to being a competitive team with a little more balance to hopefully continue to attack the way I described earlier and be a threat,” Sweeney said.
“I think we stood here a year ago and wondered whether or not we were going to score enough goals, and to the players’ credit, the coach’s credit, they found ways,” he added. “Our power play improved. We have a different look now, with a left one timer in the elbow. I hope it all comes together. I hope we’re right back at the upper echelon. The challenge is we are a 100-point team.”
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