The Bruins are about to see three familiar faces walk back into TD Garden this week, but none of them are coming back in black and gold.
Linus Ullmark gets the first shot at Boston on Monday, October 5, when the Ottawa Senators visit. Andrew Peeke follows on Thursday, October 8, as a member of the Utah Mammoth. Dan Vladar closes out the run on Saturday, October 10, now with the Philadelphia Flyers.
Ullmark’s departure still stands out as the biggest of the three. He was traded to Ottawa in the summer of 2024 after making it clear during his Bruins run that he wanted to play more regular season games.
Bruins general manager Don Sweeney explained the decision this way: "Linus was a really good addition to the Boston Bruins. And (we) made a decision that, you know, in this case, both goaltenders (Ullmark and Swayman) wanted to play 55 games.
And that's tough, unless someone gets hurt, to have both guys be playing. So, we wish him well.
"
That move sent Ullmark to the Senators, where his save percentage dropped from .915 to .891 under a new team structure. This season, he’s off to a .931 start through one game, though that’s obviously a tiny sample.
He also went 1-1 against Boston last season. Still, the Bruins have changed around him, and Monday brings a new look for Ullmark to deal with inside a building he knows well.
Peeke’s return comes with a different kind of profile. The defenseman left Boston in July as a free agent and signed a 1-year deal with Utah.
He’s already posted a goal and an assist in the Mammoth’s opener and sits at a +2. At 6-foot-3 and 214 pounds, he brings size and edge, but his minutes are down from what he logged with the Bruins.
Vladar’s trip back is the most familiar in one sense and the most uncertain in another. Boston last saw him as a Bruin in the 2020-2021 season, when he appeared in five games and went 2-2-1.
He later spent time in Calgary and then Philadelphia. He also returned to Boston for a 2026-27 preseason game, but left after the first period because of injury.
The Flyers enter the week at 0-1-2 and sit at the bottom of the Metropolitan Division, while the Bruins are on top of the Atlantic Division.
The home-ice setup matters here, too. Boston has traditionally been better at TD Garden than on the road, and this three-game home stretch gives the Bruins a chance to respond after their first loss of the season to Minnesota on Saturday. The old Bruins are coming back, but the building, the lineup, and the timing all favor Boston.
In Other News...
Bruins Still Have One Roster Hole That Could Define Their Ceiling
Don Sweeney checked off one offseason need by landing JJ Peterka from the Utah Mammoth, a move that cost the Bruins two first-round draft picks and gave the roster another piece up front. Even so, the bigger question hanging over Boston has not changed: the club still lacks a top-six center and is rolling back the same group from last season while the rest of the roster takes shape around it.
That is why the trade market remains worth watching for Boston, especially with names already being floated as possible fits if the right situation opens up. One recent report from Adam Gretz of Bleacher Report put the Bruins among four teams that could make sense for Winnipeg center Mark Scheifele if he becomes available, a reminder that the Bruins may still need one more major swing to push their ceiling higher. [Read more 🡒]
Bruins Make Intriguing Lineup Call Ahead Of Senators Game
The Bruins are arriving in Ottawa with a couple of notable roster tweaks as they prepare for a meeting with the Senators. Matthew Poitras is back in the mix after coming off injured reserve, and Boston is also turning to rookie defenseman Frederic Brunet in a fresh look on the blue line. The moves give the lineup a different feel heading into a game where the Bruins will try to keep things steady against a Senators team that will be missing defenseman Jake Sanderson because of injury.
Poitras is slated to slide into the fourth-line center role, giving Boston another option down the middle as it continues to sort out its forward groups. The more intriguing wrinkle is what the Bruins are doing on defense, where Brunet is in position for his first NHL action. For a team still trying to find the right balance between health and depth, this kind of adjustment can say a lot about where the coaching staff thinks the next opportunity might be. [Read more 🡒]
Bruins Forwards Suddenly Enter An Oilers Trade Debate
The Oilers have opened the 2026-27 season at 2-0-1 even while dealing with a depleted forward group, and that has already pushed them into trade chatter. Elliotte Friedman reported Edmonton has at least considered dealing from its blue line to bring in help up front, a search that has quickly widened as the roster absences continue to shape how the team can play early.
For Bruins fans, the twist is that two familiar bottom-six names have surfaced as possible fits in the discussion: Mark Kastelic and Michael Eyssimont. Montreals Kirby Dach is also in the mix, though he would present a tougher path because of his cap hit and injury history, and for now the Oilers are still weighing whether a move is worth making at all. [Read more 🡒]