2025-2026 NHL team preview: Boston Bruins

LAST SEASON

The Boston Bruins might lament their measly one Stanley Cup this century (we should all be so lucky), but they have dominated the 2000s by most measurements. No team has more regular-season wins over the past 25 years, and only the newfangled franchises in Vegas, Seattle, and Utah have conceded fewer goals. Nothing lasts forever, though, not even for the NHL’s (black and) gold standard.

Just two years removed from the most dominant regular season of all time, the B’s cratered, tying the Philadelphia Flyers for the third-fewest wins in the league and the Pittsburgh Penguins for third-worst goal differential. Everything went wrong in a season during which chemistry, health, and goals were hard to come by.

Boston’s woes started in the summer, when talented netminder Jeremy Swayman missed camp during a contract holdout. A visibly rusty Swayman finally debuted on Oct. 10, but by Nov. 19, the already sputtering Bruins had axed coach Jim Montgomery in favor of longtime assistant Joe Sacco. The ‘new coach bump’ landed with a thud, and GM Don Sweeney finally waved the white flag in March by shipping out grinder Trent Frederic, veteran centerman Charlie Coyle, blueline staple Brandon Carlo, and, most painfully, captain Brad Marchand ahead of the trade deadline.

With top defensemen Charlie McAvoy and Hampus Lindholm injured and a toothless attack notwithstanding David Pastrnak, Sacco’s skeleton crew won just five of their final 18. Bruins CEO Charlie Jacobs says things will be different in 2025-26, but does he believe it? A frustrating offseason has left more questions than answers.

KEY ADDITIONS & DEPARTURES

Additions

Viktor Arvidsson, RW
Tanner Jeannot, LW
Sean Kuraly, C
Mikey Eyssimont, RW
Jordan Harris, D
Alex Steeves, LW
Matej Blumel, RW

Departures

Parker Wotherspoon, D (Pit)
Cole Koepke, LW (Win)
Vinni Lettieri, RW (Tor)
Jakub Lauko, LW (Cze.)

OFFENSE

Pastrnak was already known as a one-man band in Boston after Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci retired, but there’s no overstating Pastrnak’s importance to the Bruins’ wilting attack now that Marchand is gone: the Czech superstar’s 106 points accounted for more than 47% of the club’s offense. The Bruins are lucky to have ‘Pasta,’ a relentless volume shooter who has added elite playmaking to his game over consecutive 63-assist seasons.

The primary beneficiary of all those helpers last season was Morgan Geekie, who set career highs in goals and points for a third consecutive year, this time at a top-six rate (33 G, 57 P in 77 GP). Geekie might never find twine with 22% of his blistering shots again, but his soft hands and high work rate make him a great foil for Pastrnak; it’s no coincidence the versatile forward’s new contract runs concurrently with Pastrnak’s through 2031.

That’s also when top center Elias Lindholm’s contract runs out, but there are already a fair few Bostonians wishing he’s someplace else by then after a paltry 47-point debut. Still, the former Calgary pivot’s line with Pastrnak and Geekie crushed it after Sacco finally gave them an extended look, winning its minutes 15-2 and bossing nearly 65% of expected goals. The same combination should give new coach Marco Sturm a starting point for his forward group.

That’s the only easy answer Sturm will find up front. It’s possible that new guy Viktor Arvidsson rediscovers his goal-scoring touch (15 G last season, down from 26 G 82-game average), that two-way winger Pavel Zacha brushes his off his worst offensive season (47 P in 82 GP) as a Bruin, and that both men have enough finish and compete to their game to bring the best out of inconsistent playmaker Casey Mittelstadt (83 A from 2022-24). Even if everything falls into place for Zacha, Mittelstadt, and Arvidsson, that still leaves two lines bereft of proven NHL scoring.

Despite a nearly $7-million offseason investment in veteran forecheckers Tanner Jeannot, Sean Kuraly, and Mikey Eyssimont, there isn’t a single 10-goal or 20-point player in the Bruins’ bottom six as it’s currently constructed. McAvoy, Hampus Lindholm, and Mason Lohrei (33 P in 77 GP) will need to cover the difference from the blueline.

DEFENSE

Boston’s 26th-ranked scoring defense should be a far more formidable group with any luck at all. Last season, Lindholm went down in November with a knee fracture, and McAvoy never returned from the 4 Nations Face-Off from what the team characterized as a medical gaffe by the Team USA/Minnesota Wild staff. Contact breaks and medical malpractice don’t tend to be recurring issues, so McAvoy and Lindholm should figure into more than 67 games apiece, let alone combined.

With Carlo out of the picture, it makes sense for Sturm to use both his big guns in one shot. Lindholm’s recovery speed on the left side of the ice could free up McAvoy to blow up plays in the neutral zone with his physicality. Though they’ve rarely functioned as full-time partners in recent seasons, there should be ample chemistry left over for the duo: from 2021-24, the Bruins outscored opponents 39-20 with McAvoy and Lindholm on the ice at 5-on-5.

Nikita Zadorov was signed last summer to enable McAvoy’s offensive creativity, but Zadorov didn’t find his groove until McAvoy’s season ended. The big Russian with the big personality eventually thrived as the Bruins’ top D-man, even as the team crumbled around him. Zadorov finished the year with an impressive +25 rating, 22 clear of second place among Boston skaters (min. 19 GP).

At his worst, Zadorov is a minor penalty machine who pulls himself out of position for big hits. At his best, he’s a crease-clearing lightning rod that can log 20 hard minutes a night. Zadorov’s surprise chemistry alongside late-season addition Henri Jokiharju, an efficient if physically unimpressive puck mover, could garner top-four usage. That would relegate Lohrei to the bottom-pairing at even strength, which seems like a good thing; after posting a league-worst -43 rating, Lohrei could use some sheltered minutes.

Elias Lindholm and Pavel Zacha remain Boston’s most effective two-way top-six forwards, while Jeannot, Kuraly, and forechecker Mark Kastelic should help tilt the ice in Boston’s favor further down the lineup.

GOALTENDING

Blame the team in front of him all you like, but the first year of Swayman’s new contract went poorly. The 26-year-old Alaskan’s busiest season to date was also his worst (.892 SV%, league-high 176 GA), and his offseason theatrics didn’t help with the optics.

It’s all water under the bridge as long as the Bruins’ masked man proves last season was nothing more than a blip. Swayman, who had the fifth-best SV% in the NHL from his debut through 2023-24 (.919), certainly looked more like himself in international duty as Team USA swiped the gold at the IIHF World Championship.

Some of Swayman’s struggles were related to a 58-game workload in the absence of his old friend Linus Ullmark. While the Bruins are certainly paying Swayman like a full-time starter, paring that number back to an even 50 might increase his effectiveness.

That would mean more work for 300-game vet Joonas Korpisalo in his second year under the tutelage of Boston goalie whisperer Bob Essensa. ‘Korpi’ was fine last season but didn’t have the sort of career renaissance so many of Essensa’s charges seem to enjoy. Korpisalo needs more game rhythm, and a 60/40 split could be in the best interests of all parties involved.

COACHING

Firing Jim Montgomery was a desperate move by a front office that had, led by Sweeney and President of Hockey Operations Cam Neely, painted itself into a corner. The St. Louis Blues’ overnight turnaround after bringing in Montgomery made that clear, but there’s no going back now. It’s Marco Sturm’s time, and that could be a good thing. The German has one of the strongest CVs of any head coaching hire in his class, rookie or otherwise.

After steering his home country to a momentous Olympic Silver Medal in 2018, Sturm spent four seasons assisting Willie Desjardins and Todd McLellan, two of the sharpest X’s and O’s minds in the sport, with the Los Angeles Kings. The Kings put Sturm in charge of the AHL Ontario Reign in 2022, and playoff appearances followed in each of his three seasons at the helm. Neely and Sweeney are hoping Sturm can bring some of L.A.’s commitment to five-man defense to his new/old team.

Sturm will be joined by Essensa, in charge of the goalies for the 23rd-straight season, and defensive shotcaller Jay Leach, who was reportedly a finalist for the big chair, behind the bench. Stanley Cup champion Chris Kelly is also sticking around, but will likely lose the whiteboard to veteran special teams assistant Steve Spott after a brutal season in charge of the power play (15.2%).

ROOKIES

The man everyone wants to see pull on the black and gold this season is James Hagens, who plays just 20 minutes down I-90 from TD Garden at Boston College. Hagens was once the presumptive No. 1 pick in the class of 2025, but his good-not-great draft year and slight stature dropped him to seventh overall. He’s still a potential first-line center, and a big sophomore year could tempt the Bruins to approach Hagens with an ELC this spring. He is by far the most interesting prospect in their pipeline.

That’s not to disparage distant runner-up Fraser Minten, a promising center in his own right. Minten will tangle with fellow young two-way players Johnny Beecher and Marat Khusnutdinov for the final center spot but should have the inside track for the job. Of the three, Minten, a physical two-way player with 21 NHL games under his belt, has the highest ceiling by some ways.

On the wings, an uninspiring 12-game cameo probably won’t be enough to dissuade Boston’s decision-makers from once again banishing former 2021 No. 21 overall pick Fabian Lysell to AHL Providence. Lysell hasn’t shown the explosiveness of a top-six NHL player and doesn’t have the physical tools to cut it as a forechecker.

If Lysell is a high-profile disappointment, Dans Locmelis has all the makings of an out-of-nowhere success story. Locmelis once profiled as the sort of hard-working, unspectacular player that makes for good organizational depth out of the fourth round. That was before the Latvian followed up a sophomore breakout at UMass with a six-game scoring explosion for Providence (3 G, 12 P) and another four goals at the IIHF World Championship. Locmelis is quickly working his way up the Bruins’ thin prospect rankings. Is an NHL debut in his future?

Czech sniper Matej Blumel is another sleeper to watch. Blumel couldn’t crack a loaded Dallas Stars’ top-nine but picked up an impressive 89 goals in 197 games for their AHL affiliate over three seasons. With nothing left to prove in the ‘A,’ Blumel could force his way onto Sturm’s second power play.

BURNING QUESTIONS

1. What youth movement? Brad Marchand, Charlie Coyle, and Brandon Carlo were veteran, stalwart players, the kind who usually only get traded to make way for the next generation. In Boston’s case, the next generation is a bunch of guys who aren’t half as talented as the last generation and not all that much younger. Kuraly, Jeannot, and Eyssimont weren’t brought in to warm the bench. The top six looks locked in, and fourth-liner Kastelic earned an extension last January. That means there are only two roster spots left for some combination of Minten, Khusnutdinov, Blumel, Beecher, Lysell, and playmaking 21-year-old Matt Poitras. Bruins’ fans who had hoped to watch the youth brigade this season had better check which channel carries the Providence games.

2. Are the Bruins too worried about the Panthers? The Bruins hate the Florida Panthers. Who doesn’t? They’re the league’s dirtiest team and sorest winners. To Boston, though, they’re so much worse than that. They ruined the best season ever. Ended Patrice Bergeron’s career. Stole Brad Marchand. Worst of all, they’re meaner than the Bruins, a constant reminder that Cashman and O’Reilly don’t live here anymore. Sweeney and Neely recruited tough guys Zadorov (in 2024) and Jeannot, as well as an insufferable pest in Eyssimont, to close that gap. Aren’t they forgetting something? To outmuscle Florida in the playoffs after two failed tries, Boston has to first make the playoffs. Unless Jeannot has another 24-goal outburst lying around, that could be an issue for a roster so light on weapons.

3. Who’s next to the chopping block? What do Jim Montgomery, Bruce Cassidy, and Claude Julien have in common? They all won the Jack Adams Award behind the TD Garden bench, and they all got their walking papers from Sweeney and Neely. Cassidy and ‘Monty’ have done more than OK for themselves since the divorce. Maybe the front office with the league’s worst draft record should bear a little more of the blame for Boston’s inability to win another Cup and, more recently, for the team’s sharp descent. We know Sweeney’s not going anywhere: the ink on his new contract isn’t dry yet. What about Neely? The legendary power forward hasn’t done his legacy any favors in recent years, and is as guilty as anyone for the club’s infatuation with muckers and grinders.

PREDICTION

In Swayman, McAvoy, and Pastrnak, the Bruins still have important Stanley Cup building blocks. After last year’s firesale and a dreary summer, they don’t have much else. It’s hard to envision Boston jumping into the playoff field or even separating from perennial also-rans like the Detroit Red Wings and Buffalo Sabres. A total collapse would be preferable for draft position to a sixth-placed finish in the stacked Atlantic Division, but neither outcome is terribly unlikely.