Boston Bruins
33-39-10, 77 points (7th Atlantic, 15th conference, tied 28th overall)
2.71 GF/GP, 28th; 3.32 GA/GP, 26th
15.2 PP%, 29th; 76.3 PK%, 26th
Key losses: None
Key additions: F Viktor Arvidsson, F Tanner Jeannot, F Sean Kuraly, F Michael Eyssimont
Expected lineup:
Morgan Geekie-Elias Lindholm-David Pastrnak
Casey Mittelstadt- Pavel Zacha-Viktor Arvidsson
Tanner Jeannot- Sean Kuraly- Matthew Poitras
Michael Eyssimont- John Beecher-Mark Kastelic
Hampus Lindholm-Charlie McAvoy
Nikita Zadorov-Henri Jokiharju
Mason Lohrei-Andrew Peeke
Jeremy Swayman-Joonas Korpisalo
PP1: Geekie – E. Lindholm – Pastrnak – Arvidsson – McAvoy
PP2: Zacha – Mittelstadt – Poitras – H. Lindholm – Lohrei
5x5:
Boston’s top line should be fine, though any trio with Pastrnak should be able to make that claim. Beyond that is where it gets dicey. David Pastrnak had another fine season, leading the Bruins in scoring with 43 goals and 63 assists. His final totals were good, but he took a while to get going, having a slow first-third of the season. If there was a major bright spot, Morgan Geekie was it, raising his production for the third straight full season. Geekie parlayed that rise in output into a six-year, $33 million deal to remain in Boston. Beyond those two, in terms of players that spent the year in Massachusetts, Elias Lindholm and Pavel Zacha each tallied a middling 47 points. Lindholm, though, will center the top line and should have a better season, if healthy.
Of the remaining forwards, Zacha has the best chance to be productive. Casey Mittelstadt struggled last season but posted 59 and 57 points the prior two campaigns. Viktor Arvidsson was unable to produce in Edmonton last season, though he too posted 59 in 2022-23, giving some hope in Boston.
The bottom-six will more than likely be counted on to be physical but not score much. Tanner Jeannot had 24 goals for Nashville in 2021-22, so maybe he gets a chance to move up in the lineup, though don’t count on it. Even if points don’t follow, hits should. Of the remaining options, Matthew Poitras is the one to keep an eye on despite a lack of production to date.
The blueline has Charlie McAvoy…did I mention they have McAvoy? Hampus Lindholm was a beast in 2022-23, then turned back into a non-entity the past two campaigns. Nikita Zadorov can be counted on for blocked shots and hits while Mason Lohrei is likely to be the second most productive blueliner. Beyond that. Not much.
Jeremy Swayman is the man between the pipes despite his poor 2024-25 season. Joonas Korpisalo is a solid backup, but Boston is unlikely to make major noise in general, especially so fi Swayman slumps again.
Power Play:
Boston added Steve Spott from Dallas to run the power play. A new voice and approach is certainly needed after the man-advantage finished 29th in the league at a 15.2 percent success rate last season. Pasta will get his points as will McAvoy. The unit should get a boost from the net-front presence of Arvidsson while Geekie will need to vastly improve on the nine PP points he tallied last season. Lohrei showed he can run the PP while McAvoy was sidelined last year and will man the second unit.
All stats courtesy of naturalstattrick.com, moneypuck.com, hockeyviz.com, allthreezones.com, hockey-reference.com, eliteprospects.com unless otherwise noted.