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The Boston Bruins know there is work to do this summer.
The front office tore the roster down in March 2025, leaving a core of David Pastrnak, Charlie McAvoy, and Jeremy Swayman, all near or in the prime of their career.
Then they hired a first-time NHL head coach, and he helped to establish the culture that shaped the Bruins’ identity. Jeremy Swayman bounced back to form and is a finalist for the Vezina Trophy, and the Bruins involved some youth, giving Fraser Minten and Marat Khusnutdinov trusted full-time roles.
Entering the season, the expectations were low. The Bruins proved those wrong, finishing with 100 points and a spot in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. But once they got there, they met a Sabres team that was better, and that highlighted how much work still lies ahead of the front office this summer.
Cam Neely pointed out the lack of a true number-one center during the end-of-season press conference. The words “speed” and “skill” were echoed throughout the presser, showing what Don Sweeney plans to address before September.
The Bruins have other needs to address, including right-handed defensive depth. They may be able to address that need on July 1, when free agency opens. However, the market is scarce, and players still have plenty of time to re-up with their teams.
The Bruins are not going to find their number one center in free agency. They will have to look for a trade.
“Whether it’s this time or the summertime, you realize that when you do make a call about a [number one center], the guy on the other side says there’s not even 32 of them in the league,” Sweeney said at the end-of-season press conference.
Yes, Elias Pettersson and Robert Thomas have been listed as trade targets this summer, but with the market as dry as it is, those players will command a high return. Especially Thomas, who is on a team-friendly deal ($8.125 million until 2031) and had a high price at the trade deadline.
By virtue of their retool, the Bruins have a prospect pool and a pile of draft picks. They can use those pieces, or other NHL players, to address their need, but becoming too aggressive may set them back.
The Bruins have five first-round picks in the next three years, including two unprotected picks. They also have NCAA prospects like Dean Letourneau, Will Zellers, and Chris Pelosi, who are all coming off strong seasons at school.
Fraser Minten, 21, and James Hagens, 19, are young, in-house options for the Bruins at center. Both are candidates to be a 1C in their careers, and Cam Neely spoke highly of their potential at the end-of-season press conference.
“I think they both have that skill set. They’re both a little different players,” said Neely. “One’s more like Bergy (Patrice Bergeron) as far as a 200-foot player and maybe [doesn’t] see the ice as well as Hagens does. Hagens’ head is up all the time, he’s constantly looking to distribute.”
Neither is a finished product, and Hagens’ NHL spot is not guaranteed. Putting the onus on them to be the No. 1 guy is an extremely tall ask this early in their careers, but the true lack of a 1C allows Marco Sturm to put his young guys into big situations, much like this past season. Minten occasionally skated alongside David Pastrnak on the first line during the season, and while they played together, they had a plus-15 goal differential (22-7).
With a thin market and high prices, the Bruins cannot become desperate for their 1C. But standing completely still may do more harm than good.
Pastrnak is turning 30; he wants help. He wants to win, and he said it after the season. Don Sweeney applauded him for his comments, but he’s been around for a while, and he has seen this before.
“I’d say, 10 years ago, when [Pastrnak] was working his way into our lineup, maybe the Bergeron, Chara said, ‘How good is this young man?’ We might say the same thing about Fraser Minten and [Marat Khusnutdinov] and James Hagens,” said Sweeney.
The Bruins spent the 2025 trade deadline laying the foundation for a retool. They tore the house down, and just over a year later, they have a deep prospect pool, extra first-round picks, and young NHL contributors.
They also have $15,415,417 in cap space next season, according to PuckPedia.
The Bruins should use both their money and trade chips to improve the roster. They should pursue upgrades. But they exceeded expectations this season, and forcing a blockbuster may undermine what they started building during the retool.
They need a 1C, but they cannot be desperate for one.
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The post How Aggressive Should Bruins Be in Search for a 1C This Summer? appeared first on Boston Hockey Now.
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