The Bruins may be sitting on a roster that looks mostly finished, but the job still doesn’t feel done.
Boston has more than $5 million in salary cap space as it moves into mid-July, that stretch when NHL business slows down and executives head for the summer. Even so, the picture in front of the Bruins still looks a little unfinished. They’ve got 10 viable NHL defensemen in the mix, and young players such as Matt Poitras, James Hagens and Frederic Brunet could be knocking on the door if they turn in strong showings at training camp.
That leaves Boston in a familiar spot: not necessarily in a hurry, but clearly still open for business. Any further changes might not come until the season begins, or until something unexpected - like a preseason injury - forces the issue. The possibility of another club creating cap pressure could also shake things loose, with the source pointing to the Anaheim Ducks matching Leo Carlsson’s offer sheet from the Flyers as one example of how a team can suddenly find itself needing to make moves it hadn’t planned on.
Don Sweeney said the market has already started to tilt in a different direction.
“I referenced prior to [July 1] that there were a lot more aggressive conversations going on with particular players in the trade scenarios, so I think that’s possibly the newer landscape. There will always be free agency, the players will always change…some teams are still going deep in those situations,” said Don Sweeney.
“I don’t think that’s ever going to change when a player hits there, and they have the opportunity to change teams. But the trade scenario seems to be coming up a little more prevalent in terms of where a team is at, what you’re targeting, and player movement may become a little more aggressive pursuit [as a result].”
If the Bruins do make another move, it’s going to take some subtraction as well as addition. The names mentioned as possible pieces to move include Mason Lohrei, Henri Jokiharjy, Mikey Eyssimont and even Sean Kuraly, with Boston needing to clear payroll if it wants to add more quality or create room for younger players pushing for jobs.
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Bruins Linked To The Center Fix Fans Have Been Waiting For
Don Sweeney has spent much of the offseason reshaping the Bruins through trades, bringing in JJ Peterka and Will Borgen while also re-signing Connor Clifton, and the work may not be done. Boston still looks crowded on the blue line and thin down the middle, which is why the search for a center has become one of the more obvious threads hanging over the roster as camp approaches.
That search has led to some familiar trade chatter, with Pavel Zachas name circulating and the Bruins even being mentioned as a possible fit for Seattle forward Shane Wright. If Boston does keep pushing to balance the lineup, it may have to part with a defenseman such as Mason Lohrei to make the pieces fit, a reminder that the next move could be less about adding talent than solving the roster puzzle. [Read more 🡒]
Bruins May Already Be Second Guessing This Ex-Leafs Pickup
Alex Steeves looked like a useful depth add when he left the Maple Leafs for Boston and settled into a regular role during the 2025-26 season. He got into 43 games, chipped in nine goals and 16 points, and the Bruins rewarded that production with a two-year extension, a sign they believed there was still more to come from a player who had found a foothold after changing teams.
The playoff picture was less reassuring. Steeves dressed in only two of six games against the Buffalo Sabres and did not record a point, which leaves his place on the roster a little murkier heading into next season. With Marco Sturm set to sort out the lineup, Boston still has to figure out whether Steeves is part of the forward mix or simply a depth piece whose early momentum has already started to fade. [Read more 🡒]
Bruins Blue Line Squeeze Could Put One Young Defenseman In Trouble
The Bruins are carrying a crowded blue line right now, with 10 NHL-capable defensemen in the mix, and that kind of surplus usually creates a decision somewhere down the road. For the moment, though, there is no immediate pressure to move anyone, in part because Charlie McAvoys suspension gives the club a little breathing room to sort through the picture without rushing a roster call.
Still, the logjam is the sort of situation that tends to squeeze out a young defender before it affects the established names. Boston has enough depth to survive the short term, but once McAvoy is eligible to return, the Bruins may have to clear space one way or another, and that could put a younger blue-liner in an uncomfortable spot. [Read more 🡒]