The Bruins may be staring at a rough 2026-27 season, and the early 2027 draft projections don’t do them any favors.
According to an early Tankathon projection of the 2027 NHL draft order, Boston is slotted to pick 10th in the first round with its own selection. That kind of placement points to a team that would miss the postseason and not be especially close to the cutoff. In other words, the Bruins would be sitting in the bottom third of the league.
There is one obvious upside to that spot, though: 10th is still close enough to give Boston a shot at winning the 2027 NHL Draft Lottery and landing the first-overall pick. The New York Islanders managed something like that a couple of seasons ago, and the Bruins would have that same path available to them if the projection holds.
Boston also appears set to add another first-rounder in 2027. Tankathon has that pick landing at 20th overall, originally belonging to the Toronto Maple Leafs.
That pick traces back to a complicated swap involving 2026. The Bruins were due to receive Toronto’s 2026 first-rounder, but it was top-five protected, and then the Leafs won the 2026 NHL Draft Lottery. That pushed the obligation into 2027, which is how Boston ends up with the Maple Leafs’ first-round pick next year.
Because Toronto is projected to make the playoffs, that selection is expected to land outside the top 10. That also means the Bruins would get it without having to worry about the Philadelphia Flyers being in the mix.
For Bruins fans, the bigger takeaway may be what the projection says about the direction of both teams. Toronto is projected as a club on the rise, while Boston looks more likely to slide. If that happens, the real question becomes how far the Bruins fall - and what it would take to get back to the level that once made them a President’s Trophy-caliber team.
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Mason Lohreis path is far from settled, and the same is true for Matthew Poitras, whose fit could change depending on how Boston lines up its forwards. With camp decisions looming, the Bruins are using these early days to see who can hold a spot and who might have to wait, which makes both players central figures in a roster battle that still has some important pieces to fall into place. [Read more 🡒]