Boston Bruins Not Expecting Two Key Players to Return Next Season

The Boston Bruins have a franchise-altering summer ahead of them as the 2023 offseason will be a tough one for general manager Don Sweeney to navigate. He doesn't have a ton of cap space and the team just shipped out Taylor Hall to the Chicago Blackhawks for basically nothing. These are the types of salary dumps to expect out of Boston as they look to sign players for next season.

Two Bruins who at this point are not expected back are both Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci. The Bruins leadership team is carrying on this offseason with the assumption that both players will not be back in Boston next season. Sweeney admits he'd love to have them back, however both veteran forwards are pondering their future and the team doesn't want to step on any toes during the decision process.

The Bruins are operating under the assumption that Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci won’t be back, president Cam Neely said. But they’re still hopeful they will be and communication is open with the players. They’re giving them space and time to make decisions on their futures.

— Dan Rosen (@drosennhl) June 27, 2023

If both Bergeron and Krejci decide to not return to the NHL, the Bruins are going to be desperate for some help down the middle and could be in the market for signing free-agents Ryan O'Reilly or Jonathan Toews. 

Other trade candidates who could be shipped out for cap space include Mike Reilly, and goaltender Jeremy Swayman, who is due a nice pay raise as a restricted free agent behind Vezina trophy winner Linus Ullmark.

The Bruins are a bit of a mess right now, after many seasons of being the team to watch when it comes to managing the salary cap. Interesting times in Bean Town to say the least.

Photo credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports