Insider: Bruins Will Be Just ‘Spinning Their Tires’ This Summer Unless They Do THIS

The Boston Bruins will have some cap space to work with this summer as they try to reset and regain their footing as a top team in the Atlantic Division. After an offensively-challenged season that sees them rank 29th in the NHL in goals-per-game, could they try to steal Mitch Marner from the Toronto Maple Leafs in free agency? Could they try to land other scoring UFA wingers Brock Boeser or Nikolaj Ehlers? Sure, but...

According to insider Pierre McGuire, on The Sick Podcast-The Eye Test with Jimmy Murphy, if the B's don't specifically target centers (and a top-six one would be nice), they're just spinning their wheels.

Can the #NHLBruins simply retool this offseason or is the damage too big to just patch up?

Pierre McGuire: "If you don't see them identify the signing of a center and they're swinging for the fence with high-scoring wingers, it's flawed"#thesickpodcast @MurphysLaw74 pic.twitter.com/MxO033Wt0a
— The Sick Podcast - The Eye Test (@sickpodnhl) April 5, 2025

The Bruins cleared house at the trade deadline in order to build around David Pastrnak, Charlie McAvoy and Jeremy Swayman.

But just making a free agent splash without targeted signings to address roster needs would be a wasted opportunity, says McGuire.

Organizationally, what's their biggest, pressing need? Center.
If you don't see them identify the signing of a center and they're swinging for the fence with high-scoring wingers, it's flawed... You're just spinning your tires.

The Bruins are going into their final games of the season with the disappointing Elias Lindholm (just 39 points) and Casey Mittelstadt (4 points in 12 games with Boston since coming over at the deadline) as their top-six centers, with raw prospect Fraser Minten and fourth-liner John Beecher down the middle in the bottom six.

The options in free agency for an impact center are limited, as Sam Bennett is expected to re-sign with the Florida Panthers, and the older John Tavares is certainly not going to leave his hometown Toronto Maple Leafs to go to Boston.

Then there's 34-year-old Matt Duchene and 33-year-old Brock Nelson. Good, solid centers, indeed, but hardly big parts of any Bruins future down the line.

It will be an interesting summer in Boston, to see how they attack this 'pivotal' problem.