NHL free agency begins Wednesday at noon, so now seems like as good a time as any to reset the Bruins’ offseason and take a look at the most pressing items on their to-do list.
The Bruins have already checked off one key item, locking up Taylor Hall on a four-year, $24 million extension. They also made seven draft picks over the weekend and got clarity on which player is heading to Seattle (Jeremy Lauzon).
But now the real bulk of the team-building process for the 2021-22 season begins, and the Bruins still have plenty of questions to answer. So let’s run through some key areas of the roster that need addressing.
Second-line center
The Bruins began the offseason hoping this wouldn’t be much of a question mark, but it certainly is now. Ideally, David Krejci would’ve told the Bruins he wants to return and the two sides would’ve had a new contract ready to go shortly after the Seattle expansion draft, as was the case with Hall.
Instead, we still don’t know what Krejci wants to do next season. As of Thursday, neither did Don Sweeney and the Bruins, with Sweeney telling the media Krejci “has not given a firm indication.” Even if Krejci wants to come back, there’s still a contract to negotiate.
Sweeney said there’s “no timeline” for a decision, but the reality is that it would be extremely helpful for the Bruins to have some clarity. If Krejci isn’t returning, one way to address that hole would be through free agency… which, again, begins Wednesday at noon. There aren’t a ton of great centers on the market to begin with, and the ones who are there may not last long.
Phillip Danault, who is expected to move on from Montreal, is the top name on the market. Alex Wennberg is coming off a strong season in Florida, but had a couple quiet years prior to that. Pius Suter is an intriguing option, as the 25-year-old was surprisingly not issued a qualifying offer by the Blackhawks after a strong rookie season.
The Bruins were linked to Ryan Getzlaf on Monday, but he would ideally be more of a No. 3 center than a No. 2 center at this point in his career. Paul Stastny could have been a nice veteran option, but he re-signed with Winnipeg Monday night. Nick Bonino has been a good No. 3 center throughout his career, but he’s just that: a No. 3 center. Mikael Granlund has played center in the past, but has played much more wing in recent years.
On the trade market, the Bruins have reportedly shown interest in Arizona’s Christian Dvorak. We explored that possibility here, with the general takeaway being that he could be solid enough depending on what you have to give up. The fact that he played on a line with Hall for a season and seemed to have pretty good chemistry helps, especially since Sweeney and Co. would presumably be picking Hall’s brain before acquiring him.
Of course, the Bruins could try to fill a potential second-line vacancy with internal options, but that’s a bit of a scary prospect. Charlie Coyle should be healthier and theoretically better after an offseason knee surgery, but stepping up to No. 2 center is a big ask. Jack Studnicka may still develop into a No. 2 center someday, but he’s not there yet.
Left-shot defenseman
In short, it’s looking like that “elusive left D” Cam Neely mentioned earlier this offseason may still be elusive.
One top option came off the board when Jamie Oleksiak signed with Seattle. Another came off the board with Alec Martinez reportedly finalizing an extension with Vegas.
Ryan Suter went on the board after being bought out by Minnesota and the Bruins reportedly had some early interest, but it sounds like they may be out now as the 36-year-old Suter is reportedly weighing four-year offers from other teams.
If not going to four years is what eliminated the Bruins, it’s hard to criticize them for that. While there’s an argument to be made for going all-in on Suter as a win-now move and not worrying about three or four years from now, the fact remains that signing any 36-year-old to a four-year deal is generally not a good idea.
The fact also remains that the Bruins still need help on the left side of their defense, though. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman linked the Bruins to Derek Forbort, who would be a solid enough addition in a third-pairing role, but an underwhelming addition in a top-four role. Alex Edler is probably the top 30-something veteran option after Suter. The long-time Canuck can still play and could be a sneaky good addition, even if the 35-year-old is obviously not the player he was in his prime.
Another Canuck, Nate Schmidt, is available via trade, but he’d be more of a Mike Reilly replacement than the kind of bigger, stout defenseman the Bruins would ideally want. Keith Yandle, recently bought out by Florida, is similarly a more offensive option. Jake McCabe would be a good depth signing as we outlined here, but he’s probably not a top-four player on a contending team.
It’s possible another option presents itself on the trade market, but it’s also possible the Bruins won’t be able to find that perfect all-around minutes-eater they’re looking for. Their best option may be piecing it together with a Reilly return and signing one of Forbort, Edler or McCabe, and then re-evaluating at the trade deadline.
Goaltending
We don’t know why Tuukka Rask’s hip surgery was delayed or how that might affect his timeline for a possible return… or even if the Bruins are planning to have Rask back.
Regardless, it seems likely the Bruins will be looking to add a veteran goalie to share the net with Jeremy Swayman and/or Dan Vladar. Jaroslav Halak will be moving on as an unrestricted free agent.
It seems unlikely the Bruins would be looking at top free agents like Philipp Grubauer, Frederik Andersen or Petr Mrazek, but someone from the next tier like Jonathan Bernier, Antti Raanta or James Reimer (don’t laugh) could make sense.
So too could a trade option like Arizona’s Darcy Kuemper or Vancouver’s Braden Holtby, although Holtby has really struggled the last two years. Kuemper has been really good when healthy and the 31-year-old only has one year left on his contract with a $4.5 million cap hit, some of which the Coyotes may be willing to retain. We know the Bruins and Coyotes have talked this offseason, so that could be something to keep an eye on.
Forward depth
The three areas above are going to get most of the attention, but let’s not forget that offensive depth was a major problem for the Bruins in the playoffs. They need to upgrade their bottom six, and it’s going to be interesting to see how Sweeney goes about doing it.
The Bruins did not issue qualifying offers to restricted free agents Nick Ritchie and Ondrej Kase. It’s possible one or both could still return if the sides continue to talk, but it’s also possible the Bruins will indeed be moving on from both.
If both are gone, it seems more likely Jake DeBrusk will be back despite seemingly never-ending trade rumors, with the obvious hope being that a bounce-back season is on the way. Even still, the Bruins will be in the market for an impact player to join DeBrusk and Charlie Coyle on the third line.
We already mentioned centers like Getzlaf and Bonino, who could potentially bump Coyle over to right wing… assuming there’s a No. 2 center in front of them. Blake Coleman would be just what the Bruins’ third line needs, but he’ll likely end up getting paid more like a second-liner than a third.
Kyle Palmieri, long linked to the Bruins, could be an option if he doesn’t re-sign with the Islanders. The next tier down features Joel Armia, while Michael Bunting is an interesting value option after coming out of nowhere (nowhere being five solid but not great AHL seasons) to score 10 goals in his first 21 NHL games.