The Bruins have plenty to sort through before next season, and the top six is one of the biggest questions hanging over the roster.
Boston has already seen a fair amount of turnover, saying goodbye to veterans like Viktor Arvidsson and Joonas Korpisalo while adding new pieces such as J.J. Peterka and Connor Clifton.
Even with those moves, the forward group still looks unfinished. Based on Causeway Crowd’s lineup predictions for 2026-27, the current top six would line up like this:
J.J. Peterka - Pavel Zacha - David Pastrnak
Casey Mittlestadt - Elias LIndholm - Morgan Geekie
That group has some real pop, but there’s still a clear opening for Boston to improve on the wing, especially if Casey Mittelstadt slides down to the third line with Fraser Minten and James Hagens.
If the Bruins want a cleaner answer there, free agent forward Anthony Mantha fits the bill.
At 6'5" and 240 lbs, Mantha brings size, scoring touch and a track record of adapting wherever he’s played. Last season with the Pittsburgh Penguins, he posted career highs with 33 goals and 31 assists for 64 points in 81 games. It marked a strong bounce-back after an injury-shortened year with the Calgary Flames.
Mantha has shown he can produce across a lineup, and he’s done it with a long list of teams, from the Detroit Red Wings to the Washington Capitals to the Vegas Golden Knights. That kind of versatility matters, especially for a Bruins team that could use another weapon in the attack.
He would also give Boston another threat on the power play and at even strength. When he’s healthy, he can be a difference-maker.
The catch is obvious. Mantha’s career has been defined by injury concerns and uneven production, and this past season stands out more as the exception than the rule. That’s a big reason he still hasn’t landed a long-term contract.
A player with that kind of health history and inconsistency is exactly the sort of gamble teams tend to avoid when the term gets longer. Mantha may be looking for more security, but the market may not be eager to give it to him.
If Don Sweeney can work out a short-term deal at the right price, though, the Bruins could give their scoring a major boost.
In Other News...
Bruins May Have A Risky Answer To Their Top Six Center Problem
The Bruins are still searching for a legitimate answer down the middle, and the latest name to surface is one that comes with both upside and risk. Shane Wright, once taken fourth overall, has not matched the early promise that made him such a coveted prospect, but his age and pedigree make him the kind of player a team can talk itself into if it believes a change of scenery could unlock more.
For Boston, the appeal is obvious: a young center with talent who might be available before his market gets any hotter. The catch is that Seattle is expected to seek fair value, which means any deal would likely require real assets from a Bruins system that already has to balance present needs with future depth. Nothing is close yet, but the possibility alone says plenty about how aggressively Boston may have to shop if it wants to solve its top-six problem. [Read more 🡒]
Did Sean Kuraly Give The Bruins Enough In His Return
Bostons front office had already made one notable move up front before free agency even opened, bringing in Viktor Arvidsson and then circling back to a familiar face by re-signing Sean Kuraly for two years. For a team that values structure, pace and reliable minutes in the bottom six, Kuralys return fit the profile of a low-drama, useful addition, the kind of move that can quietly stabilize a roster over the grind of a season.
Kuraly did his part in the regular season, getting into all 82 games and chipping in six goals and 16 assists while logging 13:20 a night. The playoffs offered a smaller sample but a meaningful one, too, as he added a goal and an assist in Bostons six-game first-round loss to Buffalo, giving the Bruins at least some depth production in a series that ended too soon. [Read more 🡒]
Bruins Opening Night Projection Still Leaves Two Major Problems Unsolved
The NHL schedule is about to drop, and with the season set to begin at the end of September and stretch across 84 games, the Bruins are already staring at a roster that still feels unfinished. Boston has made a few small moves, including adding JJ Peterka and bringing back Connor Clifton, but the overall picture is still one of a team in transition rather than one that has settled into its opening-night identity.
Charlie McAvoys absence to start the year only sharpens that uncertainty, especially on a blue line that already looks crowded enough to force more decisions before camp. Mason Lohrei is a name to watch if Boston keeps sorting through its defensemen, and the goalie picture has shifted too with Joonas Korpisalo gone and Michael DiPietro suddenly in line for a bigger NHL opportunity. There is still time for more changes, and for the Bruins, that may be the most important part of this whole preseason puzzle. [Read more 🡒]