Bruins Have Decisions to Make Even Before Trade Deadline

The NHL operates under a hard cap of 50 standard player contracts, but there’s an important wrinkle built into that rule. When a signed prospect is returned to junior, their deal “slides” to a future season, effectively removing it from the club’s active contract count. It’s a built‑in safeguard that allows teams to lock in young talent without squeezing their roster flexibility.

General Manager Don Sweeney and his staff’s deadline maneuvering will come with an added layer of complexity, as Boston’s contract count leaves little room for error. Any move he considers must account not only for the current season’s constraints, but also the ripple effects on next year’s roster flexibility.

The Bruins face five looming decision points that will shape their contract picture moving forward. First, they must determine how to handle their Group 6 unrestricted free agents. Second, several restricted free agents require new deals. Third, a wave of amateur prospects is approaching the point where contracts become necessary or lose them. Fourth, do they want to tap into the College free agent pool. And finally, there’s the wildcard: the possibility that blue‑chip talents James Hagens and Dean Letourneau opt to turn pro once their college seasons wrap up, not to mention Chris Pelosi and Ryan Walsh.

The Bruins enter next season with 23 players already under contract, but those remaining 27 openings evaporate fast once you break down the roster picture. A closer look shows just how quickly that flexibility tightens.

Group 6 UFA

A player who turns 25 by June 30 of their expiring contract year, has logged fewer than 80 NHL games, and has accrued three professional seasons qualifies for Group 6 unrestricted free agency. For the Bruins, that designation applies to six players: Matej Blumel, John Farinacci, Georgii Merkulov, Michael Callahan, and Victor Soderstrom.

The Bruins recently locked up Jonathan Aspirot and Alex Steeves on new extensions, to begin shrinking the number of available contracts for next season. Among the remaining Group‑6 free agents, there’s a reasonable case for bringing back Callahan as organizational blue‑line depth, likely in Providence. This season — and several before it — has underscored just how essential that extra layer of support can be.

That would bring the Bruins down to 24 available contracts.

Restricted Free Agents

Restricted free agents fall into two buckets: those eligible for salary arbitration and those who aren’t. For Boston, the arbitration‑eligible group features Jordan Harris, Dalton Bancroft, Riley Duran, Simon Zajicek, and Luke Cavallin.

My expectation is that Harris, Bancroft, and Zajicek will receive qualifying offers, while Cavallin — brought in as an insurance option for Providence — appears unlikely to be part of the organization’s plans moving forward. The Steeves extension could put Duran’s future in question as well, though the Bruins still need to ensure they can field a full AHL lineup.

Assuming the Bruins agree, that brings them down to 21 contracts.

Those without arbitration rights are: Matthew Poitras; Fabian Lysell; Brett Harrison; Frederic Brunet and Max Wanner.

Barring a trade, all five players are projected to receive qualifying offers. There’s a chance the organization moves on from Wanner, but Providence roster needs could keep him in the mix. If all are retained, Boston’s available contract slots would drop to 16.

Amateur players who’s rights will expire

The Bruins also have four collegiate prospects whose rights expire on August 15, adding another layer of urgency to their spring decision‑making. Once their NCAA seasons conclude, Oskar Jellvik, Andre Gasseau, Mason Langenbrunner, and Philip Svedeback will all be eligible to pursue professional contracts.

Jellvik once looked like a lock for an NHL deal, but back‑to‑back injury‑marred seasons have cast real doubt on that trajectory. An AHL contract now appears to be the most sensible path for the Bruins as they evaluate whether he can regain his form. Gasseau, meanwhile, never found that next offensive gear — posting totals of 29, 29, and 30, and trending toward another 30‑point campaign before injuries intervened. Concerns about his skating persist, and it’s difficult to envision him earning more than an AHL agreement.

As for Langenbrunner, it’s hard to see a scenario where he suits up for Boston despite the organization’s blue‑line needs. Any NHL deal would likely be tied to his family connection within the organization, and it’s doubtful he’d want to take that route. Svedeback is at least intriguing given the organizational need in net, but his development hasn’t taken a significant enough leap to justify an NHL commitment.

At this stage, none of these players project to receive NHL contracts — AHL deals are more realistic — which would leave the Bruins sitting at 16 contracts.

College Free Agency

The annual college free‑agent rush kicks in as soon as seasons wrap, and the Bruins have historically been active shoppers in that market. Many observers — myself included — view Boston as a leading contender for University of Maine goaltender Albin Boija, but winning that race would almost certainly require an NHL contract.

Landing Boija would trim the Bruins’ available contract slots to 15, assuming they don’t add any other free agents along the way.

Other

Many evaluators — myself included — see Ty Gallagher as a legitimate candidate for an NHL contract. After two strong seasons at Boston University, his third year brought limited opportunity, prompting a transfer to Colorado College where his game quickly rebounded. He then stepped into the AHL without missing a beat.

Gallagher is already signed to an AHL deal for next season, but he remains an NHL free agent, leaving the door open for another organization to make a push. Given the league‑wide scarcity of right‑shot defensemen, the Bruins have every reason to give his situation serious attention.

This would bring them down to 14 contracts.

Providence Bruins

Yes, the organization still needs to ice a full AHL roster, and this season 18 Providence players were on NHL contracts, with three more assigned to Maine in the ECHL. Looking ahead, Providence has just five players under NHL deals for next year, along with two on AHL contracts, leaving as many as 16 openings to address. Some of those spots will be filled internally – yet requiring contracts, while others will require outside additions. And it’s worth noting: Sweeney typically prefers to keep the contract total hovering around 47.

Contract slots vanish in a hurry, and that’s the larger point here: the Bruins have meaningful decisions looming on several players, and any moves they consider at the trade deadline will be made with that reality firmly in mind — as they should.