Don Sweeney spent the late-June and early-July stretch trying to reshape the Bruins after their first-round loss to the Buffalo Sabres, and the latest contract-efficiency rankings show some progress - just not enough to push Boston into the league’s upper tier.
In Dom Luszczyszyn’s assessment for The Athletic, the Bruins landed 18th for 2026-27 contract efficiency, a jump from 25th a year ago but still nowhere near the top of the NHL. The ranking is based on projected future value, not what a player has already done, and it factors in expected cap growth while leaving out NMCs, NTCs, and bonus structures.
Boston’s card is led by the obvious name. David Pastrnak earned the team’s lone A+ grade, with an $11.5 million cap hit over the next five seasons and a model value of $16 million. That comes out to 96.9% positive value and $23.8 million in total surplus.
Jeremy Swayman also came out well, drawing an A after holding out of 2025 training camp while seeking a new deal. His contract runs through the end of the 2031-32 season at $8.25 million per year, while The Athletic’s model pegs his value at a $12.1 million AAV and $22.9 million in total surplus.
The only other Bruins deal in the A range belongs to Jonathan Aspirot, whose two-year extension was graded A-. Sweeney signed him in January, and Aspirot rewarded that move by becoming a steady partner for Charlie McAvoy on the top pair. His cap hit is just $887.5K, while the model values him at $4.9 million with a 98% positive value.
McAvoy’s own contract - four years at $9.5 million per season - landed in the B range, with 62.1% positive value and $4.6 million in surplus. Henri Jokiharju, who was out of last year’s lineup picture, was the third-best Bruins defenseman in the model at 58.8% positive value and a B- grade. Beyond those three, the rest of Boston’s blue line is underwater, with four defensemen carrying negative total surplus.
Up front, the Bruins have seven forwards with positive total surplus, Pastrnak included. Morgan Geekie’s five-year, $5.5 million deal was graded B+ and valued by the model at a $7.7 million cap hit. Marat Khusnutdinov, Alex Steeves, Mikey Eyssimont, and Mark Kastelic also came out on the positive side and all finished in the B range.
Pavel Zacha is another name to watch, especially with extension eligibility in play. He’s in the final season of a contract that pays him $4.75 million annually, and the model gives him a $6.5 million value. His deal was graded B with an 86% positive value.
Not every recent move got a clean bill of health. Luszczyszyn said the “Bruins have several problem deals on the books, and with term, too. I’m not sure it was wise to add Will Borgen to that list.”
Borgen’s contract runs four more seasons at a $4.1 million cap hit, and the model tags it as the lowest-rated defenseman deal on the roster. It received a C grade, with a model value of $2.6 million.
JJ Peterka was described as an “interesting swing,” and his C+ grade came with a $7.3 million model value, not far off his $7.7 million cap hit. Connor Clifton’s two-year contract was not listed.
The two toughest marks on Boston’s sheet went to Tanner Jeannot and Elias Lindholm, both of whom were graded D+. Jeannot carries a minus-$10.3 million total surplus, while Lindholm sits at minus-$13.1 million.
Lindholm’s deal has been a rough one for Boston through its first two seasons. He has dealt with a recurring back injury, and Cam Neely said over the summer that the Bruins want to fix their hole at 1C. Lindholm still hasn’t topped 50 points in a Bruins uniform, and his model value has dropped to $5.1 million.
Jeannot’s contract drew skepticism when it was signed, even though he has shown value beyond the box score. The model isn’t buying in, valuing him at a league-minimum deal with a 6.4% positive value. That’s the lowest positive value on the team and ranks in the bottom 50 league-wide.
Boston’s 18th-place finish looks better in isolation than it does inside the Atlantic Division. The Bruins checked in seventh there, ahead of only the Toronto Maple Leafs at No.
- Five Atlantic teams finished in the top eight: the Canadiens at 2, the Senators at 3, the Lightning at 5, the Sabres at 7, and the Panthers at 8.
The Bruins also ranked 12th in the Eastern Conference, ahead of only the Flyers, Rangers, Maple Leafs, and Islanders.
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