The Bruins’ 2015 draft still casts a long shadow, but Dan Vladar has become one of the clearest reminders that the story didn’t end with Boston.
Vladar, the third-round pick Boston used at No. 75 in that class, has now pushed his way into the NHL’s top tier of goaltenders. On Sunday night, the NHL Network ranked him No. 8 on its 2026 list, a spot that fits the season he just put together in Philadelphia.
That rise has come the hard way. A lot of teams were high on Vladar when he came out, and Boston grabbed him in the third round after the club’s first-round haul in 2015 - Jakub Zboril, Jake DeBrusk, and Zach Senyshyn - never turned into the kind of franchise-shifting group the Bruins hoped for. DeBrusk is now with the Vancouver Canucks and not living up to the big free-agent contract he signed two summers ago.
Vladar, meanwhile, kept grinding through years in the American Hockey League before cashing in. He signed with the Flyers last summer on a two-year, $6.7 million deal and took over as Philadelphia’s No. 1 goalie in 2025-26. In 52 games, he went 29-14-7 with a 2.42 goals-against average and a .906 save percentage.
That production helped the Flyers finish third in the Metropolitan Division and set up a first-round matchup with the Pittsburgh Penguins. Philadelphia got past its in-state rival before losing to the eventual Stanley Cup champion Carolina Hurricanes in the second round.
The season also set Vladar up for his next payday. He earned a five-year extension worth an AAV of $5.5 million.
Boston eventually moved Vladar, trading him to the Calgary Flames for a third-round pick in the 2022 NHL Draft. Since then, he’s become part of a familiar pattern for the Bruins: another young goalie leaving the organization and thriving somewhere else. Brandon Bussi did the same thing this past season, leaving in free agency and winning the Stanley Cup with the Hurricanes.
Could Boston have kept either one around behind Jeremy Swayman, who landed at No. 5 on the NHL Network’s list Sunday night? Sure. But Vladar’s breakout in Philadelphia is the latest proof that he found his lane away from Boston.
In Other News...
Bruins Face A Risky Casey Mittelstadt Decision Before The Season
Casey Mittelstadt has quickly become one of the more interesting talking points around the Bruins as the season approaches, and not necessarily in a simple good-news way. His fit in Boston has already drawn mixed reaction from fans, with some seeing a player who can help move the puck and others wondering whether he settles in as more of a possession piece than a true long-term answer in a demanding role.
The uncertainty around Mittelstadt is what makes the next decision feel so delicate for Boston. If the Bruins decide they need to move him, the market could be shaped by teams looking for skill down the middle and a fresh start for a player whose background still gives him some appeal, but the conversation only gets more complicated when the question becomes whether the team should wait or act before the season gets rolling. [Read more 🡒]
Jeremy Swayman Just Raised The Stakes For Boston Next Season
Jeremy Swaymans bounce-back season did more than steady the Bruins in net, it reset the expectations around him heading into the next year. He finished 31-18-4 with a 2.71 goals-against average and a .908 save percentage, numbers that put him back in the conversation among the leagues better starters after a season that could have gone a different way.
The recognition followed, too, with a Vezina Trophy finalist nod and a fifth-place spot on NHL Networks top-10 goalie list going into 2026-27. Boston also enters the season with a new look behind him, after trading Joonas Korpisalo and clearing the backup job for Michael DiPietro, a setup that only sharpens the spotlight on Swayman if the Bruins are going to take another step. [Read more 🡒]