The Bruins kept working the margins on July 1, and the second wave of their free-agent business brought a cluster of depth additions across all three positions.
Jordan Harris is headed back to Boston on a one-year deal worth $850,000. The Haverhill, Massachusetts, native first joined the Bruins on July 1, 2025, but his season was derailed almost immediately. He appeared in just eight regular-season games after suffering a right ankle fracture in October, then didn’t get back into the lineup until March 5 before sitting again until April 4.
Harris, 25, already has 172 NHL games on his resume. Those games have come with the Bruins, Montreal Canadiens and Columbus Blue Jackets.
Boston also brought back Brendan Gaunce, a 32-year-old forward who is returning to the organization after six years away. His new contract runs two years with an NHL cap hit of $850,000. Gaunce spent most of the 2019-20 season in Providence and appeared in one game for the Bruins on November 27, 2019.
He’s been a constant shuttle between the NHL and AHL for the past decade, with 216 NHL games and 426 AHL games to his name. Last season, he played 25 games for the Blue Jackets and put up six points (2-4-6). He also wore the captain’s “C” for the Cleveland Monsters and wrapped the year with 36 points (16-20-36).
In goal, the Bruins added Jiri Patera on a one-year, two-way deal worth $850,000. The 27-year-old backstop, who is 6-foot-3, spent a brief preseason stint with Boston in 2024 and now returns to the organization after going 12-14-2 in 30 games for the Abbotsford Canucks last season.
Patera has nine career NHL appearances, going 3-4-1, and owns a 51-56-9 mark in 122 AHL games. The Golden Knights originally selected him in the sixth round, 161st overall, of their first draft.
The Bruins also added winger Brian Halonen on a two-year, two-way contract with an NHL cap hit of $875,000. The 27-year-old delivered 20 goals for the Utica Comets last season and got into 15 games with the New Jersey Devils. He has now scored 20 goals in each of his last three AHL seasons and has played 217 games in the league overall.
Halonen, from Delano, Minnesota, spent four years at Michigan Tech before joining the Devils organization. He has 19 career NHL games with New Jersey.
Boston rounded out the group with Maxence Guenette, a 25-year-old right-shot defenseman who signed a one-year deal worth $850,000. Guenette spent four seasons in the Senators organization before joining the Lehigh Valley Phantoms last season, where he posted 24 points (2-22-24) and a minus-6 rating in 44 games.
He has played eight NHL games, all with Ottawa, and has 140 points (29-111-140) in 282 AHL games. Ottawa selected him with the 187th overall pick in the 2019 draft.
After Wednesday’s moves, the Bruins have $5,390,417 in cap space.
In Other News...
Former Bruins Forward Johnny Beecher Just Took Another Tough Turn
Johnny Beechers latest stop adds another layer to a career that has already moved through Boston and Calgary, and now has him on a one-year, two-way deal for the 2026-27 season. For Bruins fans, it is a reminder of a player who once looked like he might carve out a steadier role in Boston before his path shifted, first with the Bruins and then after he was dealt into a different opportunity in Calgary.
Beecher is now an unrestricted free agent after the Flames chose not to extend a qualifying offer, which opened the door to this next landing spot. He has appeared in 165 NHL regular-season games in his career, including 35 last season, and his journey back through the league keeps him in the kind of uncertain middle ground that often defines depth forwards trying to stick. [Read more 🡒]
Former Bruins Forward Just Landed A Deal That Will Sting Fans
The Lightning kept busy in free agency, adding forward Ilya Mikheyev on a four-year contract while also bringing in depth winger Jeffrey Viel on a longer-term deal. Mikheyev arrives after his time with the Blackhawks, and Tampa Bay is clearly trying to add both speed and support to its forward group as the offseason market keeps moving.
For Bruins fans, Viel is the more familiar name. He split last season between Boston and Anaheim, and his brief run in black and gold gave the club a chance to see what he could offer in a bottom-six role before he moved on. Tampa Bays interest in him is another reminder of how quickly depth pieces can find new homes, and how one more roster decision can linger around a division rival. [Read more 🡒]