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The Boston Bruins lost their way a season ago. This perennial playoff team struggled to put the puck in the net and fell all the way to last place in the Atlantic Division. It would seem that their days of playing well in the regular season and being a significant threat in the Stanley Cup playoffs are fading into history.
While that may be the perception of the Bruins around the NHL, general manager Don Sweeney and team president Cam Neely do not share that opinion. Instead, they believe the Bruins can bounce back after last season's disaster. The Bruins still have some elite players.
At this time last year, Jeremy Swayman was viewed as one of the elite goaltenders in the NHL. However, he went through a contentious holdout with the team during training camp. He started the season poorly and he never regained his footing. The belief among the Bruins front office is that Swayman will return to top form in the upcoming season.
Charlie McAvoy and Hampus Lindholm are the team's two elite defenseman and both were injured for a significant portion of the 2024-25 season. Both blue liners are expected to be fully heathy when training camp gets underway in September.
Additionally, the Bruins have one of the top goal scorers in the league in David Pastrnak. The explosive Pastrnak scored 43 goals and 63 assists last year, and he has had three consecutive season with 106 points or more. He scored a career-high 61 goals and 113 points in the 2022-23 season and he is clearly an elite superstar.
Bruins supporting cast may need some help
Pastrnak will have some help on the top line from Morgan Geekie, who came into his own last year with 33 goals and 24 assists. He plays left wing and the line is centered by Elias Lindholm. The Bruins are hoping that Elias Lindholm can display his best form this season, something that did not happen a year ago.
If the Bruins are going to get back into the playoffs or at least make a run at a playoff spot, Sweeney will likely have to make several trades.
One of them could involve bottom 6 center Johnny Beecher. There is no doubt that Beecher is an excellent skater and that he has legitimate size at 6-3 and 220 pounds. He also does an excellent job in the face-off circle and can also kill penalties fairly well because he is a strong defensive player.
However, despite having more than enough tools, he is not any kind of an offensive threat. He has scored 10 goals and 11 assists for 21 points in the last two seasons combined. That's not even close to good enough for a player who is supposed to take a regular shift on the third or fourth line.
Perhaps his numbers will improve under new head coach Marco Sturm, but the likelihood is that he will never be more than a lukewarm offensive threat.
If the Bruins can find a trading partner who is looking for a defensive stalwart and can handle himself in the face-off circle, the Bruins could receiver a top prospect or a high draft pick in return.
Pavel Zacha may have trade value
The Bruins acquired Pavel Zacha from the New Jersey Devils prior to the 2022-23 season. The 28-year-old center was solid in his first two years with the Bruins, scoring 57 points in his first year with the team and 59 in his second. However, when he was asked to carry even more responsibility last year, his production dipped quite a bit. He had 14 goals and 33 assists in the 2024-25 season.
The Bruins had hoped that Zacha would step up after centers Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci retired, but his production fell off dramatically.
Instead of playing first- or second-line center, Zacha is now listed as a second-line left wing. That may not be a great position for him.
His name has been involved in several trade rumors, and a restart with another team may be ideal for his career. If the Bruins can get a productive offensive player for Zacha along with a key draft pick, it may be time for the team to trade him.
