The 2022-23 season for the Boston Bruins was historic in two different ways. They set the NHL record for wins (65) and points (135) in the regular season and were primed and ready for a long playoff run. Their postseason run lasted just seven games as after taking a 3-1 series lead in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs against the Florida Panthers, they dropped the final three to exit with a historic elimination.
General manager (GM) Don Sweeney made all the right moves during the season, adding Dmitry Orlov and Garnet Hathaway from the Washington Capitals at the trade deadline, then also added Tyler Bertuzzi from the Detroit Red Wings. All three players fit in perfectly into the Bruins system, but things just did not work and it feels like they missed a big opportunity to bring home their second Stanley Cup championship in 12 years.
Free agency began Saturday (July 1) and Sweeney gave everyone a heads-up at his end-of-the-season media availability that the 2023-24 roster was going to look a lot different than the one that skated off the TD Garden ice following their 4-3 Game 7 overtime loss to the Panthers. He wasn’t lying. It’s clear that after the dust settled from the playoff loss, Sweeney and team President Cam Neely carved out a path for the offseason. The moves that they made so far have given a big picture of what they are aiming for not only this season but beyond.
Bruins Let Unrestricted Free Agents Walk
Sweeney had been hinting for a couple of days leading up to free agency that it was unlikely that Orlov, Bertuzzi, or Hathaway would not be returning. All three players have moved as Orlov signed with the Carolina Hurricanes for two seasons with an average annual value (AAV) of $7.75 million and Hathaway signed with the Philadelphia Flyers for two seasons with an AAV of $2.375 million. Bertuzzi signed a one-year, $5.5 million contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs on Sunday (July 2).
(Amy Irvin / The Hockey Writers)
Defenseman Connor Clifton got a big pay raise with the Buffalo Sabres when he agreed to a three-year, $10 million contract with a $3.33 million AAV. Mike Reilly, who was bought out by the Bruins on June 30, signed with the Florida Panthers on a one-year, $1 million contract. Other than Reilly, all of the other UFAs were just not going to fit under the Bruins’ salary cap for this upcoming season. If any of the UFAs were going to return, Hathaway is the one that Sweeney would have tried to retain, but you have to think that both term and money were just not going to sit well with the Black and Gold’s front office.
Bruins Take Low-Risk, High-Reward Route in Free Agency
Boston entered free agency with $13.6 million cap space following the trade of Taylor Hall and Nick Foligno to the Chicago Blackhawks and the buyout of Reilly’s contract. In the overall picture of the NHL, that was in the middle of the pack in terms of cap space compared to other teams. As free agency began to unfold just after 12 p.m. Eastern Standard Time and the agreements started to come in, it was becoming clear that Sweeney’s agenda was to find some veterans to come in on deals that were not going to require a lot of money and in most cases, not a lot of term.
Sweeney brought back Milan Lucic on a one-year, $1 million contract, which is a cheaper version of Foligno in terms of a fourth-line veteran, but he brings more toughness than Foligno did. James van Riemsdyk signing a one-year deal is a middle-six-depth move that can provide offense and a net-front presence they had following the Bertuzzi trade in March. Morgan Geekie was signed for two years with a $2 million AAV and is bottom-six depth and he can play up the middle or on the wing. This could end up being the best signing of the group. Patrick Brown was signed as bottom-six depth and Kevin Shattenkirk was signed to replace Clifton on a one-year, $1.05 million deal.
Sweeney still has more business to attend to with his restricted free agents (RFAs), mainly Jeremy Swayman and Trent Frederic. Both players were given qualifying offers and unless a contract is agreed on, they will head to an arbitration hearing to settle on a deal. They both still have to fit under the cap and of course, there’s the question of Bergeron and Krejci’s future. The Bruins are giving them their space to make their decisions on whether or not they will play in the Centennial Season of Boston Bruins hockey in 2023-24.
Bruins Plan Appears to Be Waiting for 2024 Free Agency
The plan seems clear for the Bruins and it won’t sit well with the fanbase. Sweeney did not commit a lot of money or term in any of the deals and is leaving himself a ton of flexibility when free agency begins next summer and right now, they are projected to have nearly $27 million in cap space. Obviously, that can change between now and then, but not committing to Bertuzzi long-term, which could very well end up being something they regret maybe not this season, but beyond, means the Boston GM has an eye toward 2024 free agency.
There was no way that they were going to be able to copy what they did in 2022-23, but it should not be surprising to see what happened early in free agency. A bunch of low-risk, high-reward deals is part of what is expected to be a “reset” for the upcoming season. They will be a competitive team and they are not going to blow it up, but what Sweeney has done is he has set himself up to be a seller at the trade deadline if he needs to go down that road and create even more cap flexibility to make bigger moves to be contenders again sooner rather than later.