The Boston Bruins have entered a new era. Gone are any members of the 2011 Stanley Cup team. In comes a new (first time) head coach in former Bruin Marco Sturm. Vacant remains a team captain. New faces include old pals like Sean Kuraly who undoubtedly will be asked to bring some missing leadership to the club. A clear issue last season, Don Sweeney made adding veterans a priortiy this summer. With training camps and preseason hockey up and running, let’s look at the 2025-26 Bruins and what their expectations are this season.
Offense
David Pastrnak is a superstar. That might be the only guarantee the Bruins have when it comes to their forward group. Pastrnak played a big role in Morgan Geekie’s 33 goal campaign last year and will be key for that to replicate itself. Geekie earned a 6 year 33-million-dollar extension and the line of Pastrnak, Elias Lindholm and himself finished strong. Expect that to be Boston’s top line entering the season.
The second line however is anyone’s guess. Pavel Zacha should slot in at Centre or Left Wing depending on where Sturm likes him most. “I love [Zacha] as a centerman, absolutely love him, but he might have to play on the wing, I don’t know,” Sturm admitted. “I can look all summer long at clips, but I’ve got to stand behind the bench, I’ve got to see it in practice, I’ve got to see it behind the bench, I’ve got to feel it. And I can tell you right away, when I see Zacha for example, when he plays wing or centerman, I can see right away. I can tell you what’s the best not just for him, but for us as a team, and as a line where he’s in to get the best opportunity.” Casey Mittelstadt, acquired from Colorado at last year’s deadline, will be given every chance to provide secondary scoring. If he can establish himself like Geekie did then Sweeney will have hit on another player project. Oiler cast off Viktor Arvidsson is their likely linemate. AHL leading scorer (38 goals) and free agent signee Matej Blumel will get ample opportunity to provide scoring. Buried on the depth chart in Dallas, he could be a sneaky great add for Boston. Matt Poitras will look to make the Bruins for a third straight year but sticking around will be this year’s goal. Fraser Minton, Marat Khusnutdinov and Tanner Jeannot all figure to be in the mix for third line ice time. Fourth line contributors John Beecher, Sean Kuraly, Mark Kastelic, Michael Eyssimont and perhaps Alex Steeves will battle it out in camp. Fabian Lysell and Georgii Merkulov remain intriguing prospects who are ultimately running out of chances with the big club. Providence, at least to start the season, appears to be their destination.
Sweeney admitted the team will need to “Score by committee” this season. An admission that scoring will be a challenge outside of Pasta and Geekie.
Defense
The injury bug was the biggest enemy to the B’s defensive group last season. Hampus Lindholm was lost for the season in November. McAvoy didn’t survive the Four Nations Face Off. That is ultimately what forced the Bruins to swallow hard and accept the reality of what the season was. A lost one. With both players returning healthy and ready to go, Boston must feel better about their defensive game. “I knew Hampus out of Anaheim, I knew how good he is,” Sturm said. “He shows us again. It’s really exciting for not just me, but for the whole team that he is back. And how important it is to have him back in the lineup.”
Early indications are that Mason Lohrei may open the season skating with McAvoy. Lindholm and Andrew Peeke look to form the second pairing while Nikita Zadorov and Henri Jokiharju hope to maintain their late season chemistry discovered last season. Jordan Harris is my favorite to land the seventh spot on the blueline as he is having a solid preseason.
Boston will have to hope that their two stallworth’s on the back end remain healthy. Without them the team will be in serious trouble as witnessed last season. Lohrei is coming off a league worst –43 season and will have to improve greatly in his own zone. He was unfairly forced into top minutes given the injuries however and attributes to his lopsided plus/minus. However, if he is indeed going to ride with McAvoy this year, he will need to be much better defending. He signed a two-year bridge deal this offseason and will have to prove that he can handle team’s top lines to earn that big pay day.
Another reason the Bruins must hope for growth and health on their back end is because the goaltending will need help. Speaking of which….
Goaltending
Jeremy Swayman. That man had a season to forget. From an All-Star in 2024 to a much-scrutinized contract negotiation to the worst season of his professional career. Yeah, it was bad. Perhaps Jeremy shouldn’t have gone on a podcast to vent his frustrations with management before signing his 8-year deal. Maybe missing training camp was in fact a big deal. Here’s hoping he learned from everything last year brought and is ready to come out swinging this season. “I’m a completely different human being,” Swayman said when asked of his mindset a year removed from last year’s contract strife. “And that’s a testament to the experience that I gained throughout my career to this point. And I’m so grateful for that — the ups and downs of it all. And standing here, Jeremy Swayman is in a great spot, and I’m really excited about that.” Aside from referring to himself in the third person, Bruins fans should feel good about his mindset coming into the season. Winning gold at the 2025 Men’s Ice Hockey World Championship bodes well too as he was in the starters crease for team USA.
Joonas Korpisalo and Micheal Dipietro are battling it out for the backup job. Korpisalo was vocal about his limited playing time last year. Perhaps a misstep by the coaching staff at the time, insisting Swayman would round into form, they should have let korpisalo push him for playing time. He has the inside track to win his job back, but Dipietro is coming off a great season in the AHL where he won top honors for goaltending. Dipietro would need to clear waivers to be assigned to Providence so that bares monitoring.
Swayman should bounce back. A healthy defense, a full training camp and no distractions in general should be all he needs to reset. The Bruins are counting on it.
Coaching
The Marco Sturm era begins. Where were you January 1st, 2010, when he scored the OT goal for the B’s at Fenway Park? I was watching on TV with my very hungover buddy while eating McDonalds. Happy New Year! That goal was a precursor for what was to come for the Bruins. A big moment with bigger ones on the way a year later in 2011. Sturm brings a new approach to the Bruins. A likeable guy but a guy that isn’t afraid to demand the most out of his players. It goes a long way knowing the city. Knowing the culture and what is expected of the team’s success. God love Jim Montgomery, but I guarantee we won’t be seeing Marco lip synching the words to Bon Jovi between whistles.
Steve Spott arrives from Dallas to work with the powerplay. Chris Kelly and Jay Leach remain on the staff and will work with the defense and penalty kill. Bob Essensa “The goalie whisperer”, remains the longest serving member of the coaching staff.
Bottom Line
The Bruins will be better than last season. They will not finish in the bottom 5. Bounce back seasons from Swayman, McAvoy, the Lindholms and Pavel Zacha should be enough to have the team within striking distance of a playoff spot. Health will go a long way and so will the performance of Jeremy Swayman. In this humble writer’s opinion, the Bruins are looking at a ceiling of a wild card spot, and a floor of 9th or 10th place in the Eastern Conference. To me it’s a bridge year any way you slice it. With some big names potentially available next offseason via Free Agency, a strong draft class next June with two 1sts in hand and an up-and-coming James Hagens, the Bruins are in a “good” place. Not ready to contend but on the right track. A new era has arrived for the Bruins. Patience will be required but the early returns appear to offer great optimism.
G-Rant @TheRealG_Rant/Grant Cumming. Bruins fan. Bigger dreams, bigger screens, bigger feelings are planned.
Thoughts? Questions? Suggestions? Then remember to tune in each week to get all the latest news in the world of hockey. For more hockey news, different takes or if you want to chat about anything hockey give us a follow on YouTube, at https://twoguysandhockeytalk.com/ for all things hockey.
