Bruins will be ‘aggressive’ in NHL offseason to strengthen roster, says GM

Bruins will be ‘active’ in the NHL offseason to enhance roster, says GM originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston.

The Boston Bruins have a very solid roster, and by most measures, they outperformed expectations this season.

However, after failing to score enough goals in the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs, notably against the Florida Panthers in the second round, there is little doubt that this team requires an infusion of top-tier offensive talent.

The Bruins scored two or fewer goals in the last five of their six games against the Panthers in round two. Jeremy Swayman was excellent in net with a.917 save % in the series and a.933 save percentage in the playoffs overall, but even that level of goaltending wasn’t enough to overcome the types of scoring issues Boston encountered, both at 5-on-5 and on the power play, during the playoffs.

The Bruins averaged 3.21 goals per game during the regular season, but decreased to 2.38 in the playoffs. That’s a huge drop, especially when the margin for mistake in the playoffs is frequently razor thin.

“The margins are modest. They just are, I mean, the final three games of the series were 3-2, 2-1, and 2-1,” Bruins general manager Don Sweeney said Wednesday at the team’s season-ending press conference. “At the end of the day, the other side is having difficulties scoring, and as teams progress through the playoffs, things tighten up.

“You have to find a way; we didn’t get inside enough in rebound situations that we could have capitalized on. I need to address issues related to free agency and internal growth. We have to supplement — I need to find those guys who can come in and offer secondary scoring for us at critical times.”

How will the Bruins handle adding offensive firepower this summer?

“We are in a situation where we can look to add to our core group of guys,” Sweeney stated. He further stated: “We’re gonna be aggressive, you know, to be able to complement what we currently have in some areas.”

"We're going to be aggressive to complement what we currently have."

Don Sweeney on how Bruins will utilize cap space in offseason pic.twitter.com/FpV9wTSy8V

— NBC Sports Boston (@NBCSBoston) May 22, 2024

Speed is one area in which the Bruins hope to improve going forward.

“We’re not as fast as we’d like to be,” Bruins president Cam Neely said Wednesday.

Unlike last summer, Sweeney has a lot more salary cap freedom this year. According to CapFriendly, the Bruins are expected to have roughly $21 million in cap space, which may increase to $26 million if goaltender Linus Ullmark (and his $5 million cap commitment) is traded.

The Bruins should have enough cap flexibility to make a significant addition to the team this offseason, and, as previously stated, the largest weaknesses are up front. This roster need a legitimate top-six center and a natural goal scorer. Fortunately for the Bruins, the free agent market could be brimming with extremely good forwards.

Top centers with the potential to enter the market include Elias Lindholm, Steven Stamkos, Matt Duchene, and Chandler Stephenson. Jake Guentzel, Teuvo Teravainen, Tyler Bertuzzi, Sam Reinhart, Jonathan Marchessault, Tyler Toffoli, and Vladimir Tarasenko are among the top left/right wings eligible for free agency.

The Bruins could potentially go to the trade market for scoring help. They don’t have many top-tier talents to offer, but they do have first-round picks in 2025 and 2026 to work with.

Whether through free agency or trades, the Bruins cannot enter next season with the same level of offensive talent and expect to do better in the playoffs. Sure, young players like Matthew Poitras and Mason Lohrei are anticipated to mature, which will help fuel greater offensive production.

However, in order to compete with Eastern Conference teams such as the Rangers and Panthers, the Bruins must add at least one high-end forward to their roster before opening night in October.