The 2023 NHL Entry Draft is in the books and right on its tail is the beginning of free agency, which begins Saturday (July 1) at 12 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. All teams are going to attempt to go shopping and look at adding to their roster for the 2023-24 season beginning in October.
One team that has a lot more questions than answers entering free agency is the Boston Bruins, winners of the Presidents’ Trophy in 2022-23, but also owners of one of the most historic Stanley Cup Playoff eliminations. Leading the eighth and final Eastern Conference seed Florida Panthers 3-1, they lost the final three games and were eliminated in a Game 7 overtime loss, 4-3, on April 30 on home ice. It’s been two months since that loss and now general manager (GM) Don Sweeney has a lot of questions about how he’s going to build a roster for next season with a tight salary cap and several holes on the roster. As free agency begins, here are three burning questions facing the Bruins.
1. How Does Sweeney Spend Taylor Hall’s Money?
Needing to clear some cap space, Sweeney traded Taylor Hall and his $6 million cap hit to the Chicago Blackhawks along with the free agent rights to Nick Foligno for two prospects, defensemen Ian Mitchell and Alec Regula. Getting Chicago GM Kyle Davidson to take on all of Hall’s salary was a salary dump that Sweeney needed to make. Now the question is, what does Sweeney do with an available $6 million? He has several pending unrestricted free agents (UFAs) that he can attempt to sign before free agency opens, but it appears that isn’t going to happen. He spoke to reporters following the Entry Draft at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville Thursday.
Related: Grading Blackhawks’ Trade for Taylor Hall From Bruins
“Unless I make a move, we’re going to have a tougher time chasing the upper end of the [free agent] market place from a term or dollars standpoint. But we’re going to find some guys that can slot in & bring a boost to our hockey club” said Sweeney.
The hunch here is that they are going to go with some of their younger kids, something the GM referenced at his end-of-the-season media availability, and work in some low-cost veterans, such as the potential reunion with Milan Lucic. That’s not going to sit well with the fanbase, but that seems to be the path until something else is done to tell us otherwise.
2. Are the Bruins Really Letting Bertuzzi, Hathaway & Orlov Walk?
Let’s be honest, they were not re-signing all three players they acquired at the trade deadline. All three were as good as they hoped they would be. Dmitry Orlov supplied another offensive player on defense to go along with Charlie McAvoy and Hampus Lindholm after being acquired from the Washington Capitals. He had seven assists in the playoff series against the Panthers, but at 31 years old, he’s looking for one more payday, which is understandable, and that’s not going to be in Boston.
Tyler Bertuzzi was acquired from the Detroit Red Wings one day before the trade deadline and was one of the best forwards in the playoffs. He tied Brad Marchand for the team lead in points with 10 on five goals and five assists. He settled in on the second line with Pavel Zacha and David Pastrnak and they formed an instant connection. Yes, it was broken up at different times in the series, but after the Hall trade, you would think that they would use the money to give to Bertuzzi. It appears they’re not and he’s going to hit the open market.
Garnet Hathaway was part of the Orlov trade with the Capitals and a nice addition to the fourth line with Tomas Nosek. He had three goals and five points in the regular season and had an assist in the playoffs. He brought a tough physical presence to the lineup and would be a nice addition on a two or three-year contract and he wouldn’t cost much more than $2 million. Of the three trade deadline additions, Hathaway is the one player that you would think would be in their price range to bring back.
3. Will the Bruins Add to the Roster Through Trades?
If Sweeney can’t get the targets he wants in free agency, does he look to round out the roster through trades? Could he deal a player-for-player deal? Some trade options he could look to move are Matt Grzelcyk, Derek Forbort, or Brandon Carlo on defense, while options at forward would include Jake DeBrusk and Charlie Coyle. Maybe Linus Ullmark could be moved in goal.
Who could they target in a trade? If Patrice Bergeron does not come back, the Bruins are going to need a top-six center and the Calgary Flames are someone they could call. Elias Lindholm might be available for the right price and who knows, maybe Noah Hanifin could be included. Obviously, Grzelcyk or Forbort would have to be moved, but anything is possible. If the Bruins can’t find what they want in free agency, then going the trade route might have to be the avenue they kick the tires on.
The next couple of days are going to end two months of speculation since the stunning postseason exit at the hands of the Panthers. Things are trending to a position of where the Black and Gold are going to take a step back for the Centennial Season in 2023-24, but just how far back that step remains to be seen.
