The Boston Bruins are acquiring center Morgan Geekie on a two-year, $4M deal worth $2M per season, per a team announcement.
Geekie, 24, lands in Boston after going without a qualifying offer from his former team, the Seattle Kraken. Geekie was originally acquired by Seattle in their expansion draft, coming over from the Carolina Hurricanes with the hope that his success at the WHL and AHL levels would finally translate in a new environment.
While Geekie showed some flashes in Seattle, he couldn’t put together enough consistent production to earn larger roles in head coach Dave Hakstol’s lineup. With Boston expecting to enter next season without their top two centers from last year, Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci, Geekie has perhaps the best opportunity of his career to advance his NHL career.
If he can have a strong training camp and snatch a top-nine center role, Geekie could feasibly have a career-best season with the Bruins and provide them with exceptional surplus value for their $2MM cap hit. He has shown some offensive touch at lower levels, such as in the AHL where in his last full season he scored 42 points in 55 games, so perhaps he has some more offensive upside to be unlocked in his six-foot-three frame.
If he can’t manage to finally become a consistent NHL producer, this $2M cap hit could look a bit pricey for what Geekie provides as a bottom-sixer. But even taking into account that risk, it’s a decent bet for the Bruins to make.
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