The Boston Bruins entered Friday with a slim one-point lead over the Columbus Blue Jackets for the second and final wild card playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
And after failing to make any moves of consequence before the 3 p.m. ET NHL trade deadline, holding on to that playoff spot could prove very difficult.
The B’s made two trades Friday. They acquired two minor league forwards from the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for a minor league forward and defenseman. They also acquired Vancouver Canucks left wing Lukas Reichel for a 2026 sixth-round pick. All three players added will report to the AHL’s Providence Bruins.
A lot of people (and analytics models) didn’t expect the Bruins to even be in a position to make the playoffs at this point in the 2025-26 campaign after they took a sledgehammer to their roster and dealt away a bunch of veteran players at last season’s trade deadline. The Original Six franchise is in a retool.
But the Bruins are very much in the playoff mix, and they had roster weaknesses that could have been upgraded before Friday’s deadline. None of them were addressed.
That’s not necessarily a bad outcome, though. Giving up premium assets like top prospects and first-round picks for rentals made no sense for the B’s because they aren’t a legit Stanley Cup contender at this moment. And when you look at the crazy prices teams were paying for veteran players Friday, it was wise for the Bruins to not go down that path.
Bruins general manager Don Sweeney wanted to add to his NHL roster, but he couldn’t find a deal to his liking.
“I would have liked to have added to the group,” Sweeney told reporters at a press conference following the trade deadline. “We would always like to, we always want to improve our team. We did enough due diligence and maybe that applies at the draft or afterwards. Or maybe we take our picks because we’re committed to the process that we started.
He added: “The mandate is to continue to get better. We stayed committed. We didn’t deviate from what we felt was the right choice, and I’m hoping that pays dividends right now with the guys that are still here, because they’ve earned that right to carry us forward and moving forward as an organization.”
Parting with premium assets for an impact player signed beyond this season — like Blues center Robert Thomas, for example — would have made sense for the Bruins. Many of Boston’s core players are in their late 20s or early 30s. At some point in the next year, making a bold move to add a high-end player (particularly a forward) needs to be explored.
The Bruins will have to wait until the draft or free agency in June/July to make a meaningful upgrade to their roster.
Jeff Curry-Imagn ImagesJeff Curry-Imagn Images
Blues center Robert Thomas was the best player rumored to be available, but St. Louis held on to him at the trade deadline.
However, they could make one notable addition to their group before the playoffs if James Hagens signs his entry-level contract after Boston College’s season ends. The No. 7 pick in the 2025 NHL Draft is having a tremendous season for the Eagles and is considered one of the league’s top prospects as a potential top-six forward.
If Hagens does join the Bruins for the last few weeks of the regular season, it might provide the team a boost. But it would be a lot to ask of a 19-year-old to be a real contributor for a team in the playoff race. The Washington Capitals signed Hagens’ former Eagles teammate, Ryan Leonard, late last season and he scored one goal in nine regular season games. He had zero goals and one assist in eight playoff games. Leonard has played well as a rookie this season with 31 points in 56 games, but it’s tough for even the most talented prospects to bolster a team right out of college.
For now, the Bruins have to make do with what they have, and their path back to the playoffs is a challenging one. Sweeney is confident his team can still qualify.
“I don’t think we’ve played to the same standard we were prior to the (Olympic) break. We’ve lost a little momentum and we need to get it back,” Sweeney said. “But we charted a course last year that we knew this wasn’t going to be one-and-done.
“Our intentions were to get back right where we are and be the most competitive group we can. The players and coaches have done a great job. We’re still excited about that. I think our odds are if we play the right way like we were before the break that we’re going to be a tough out and get in. That’s the challenge for the group.”
The Bruins have the second-toughest remaining schedule, per Tankathon. Twelve of the Bruins’ 21 games left on the schedule are on the road, and they have struggled mightily away from TD Garden. Boston’s 11 road wins are at least five fewer than every other East team currently in a playoff spot.
“You’d be hard pressed to find a team that wants to have playoff success that’s not able to go out and win on the road. That’s an area we definitely have to be better at,” Sweeney said.
“Sometimes it’s our starts. Sometimes it’s our second period like (Thursday night). There’s really no excuse for it, to be honest with you. To be a dominant home team like we have, you should be able to go into any environment and execute.”
Winslow Townson-Imagn ImagesWinslow Townson-Imagn Images
The Bruins must improve on the road to bolster their playoff odds.
It will be fascinating to see if the Bruins’ offensive output, which has been well above expectations this season, will continue.
Boston’s 12.33 shooting percentage is the third-highest in the league. Several players, including Morgan Geekie and Casey Mittelstadt, have career-high shooting percentages this year. The B’s, as a team, have scored 14.68 goals above expected, per Natural Stat Trick. Only the Montreal Canadiens have scored more goals above expected. The Bruins power play has the fifth-best success rate in the league at 25.6 percent. This unit ranked 29th last season.
What happens if the Bruins regress offensively? What if, instead of shooting a red-hot percentage the rest of the season, they shoot at an above average rate? It could be enough to drop them out of the playoffs.
In order to combat what might be a likely scoring regression, the Bruins will need their goaltending to be awesome over the next six weeks to make the postseason.
Jeremy Swayman is having a bounce-back campaign and has the third-highest goals saved above expected, per MoneyPuck. In his last start Tuesday, the Penguins were expected to score 4.45 goals, per Natural Stat Trick, but Swayman allowed only one in a 2-1 victory.
Joonas Korpisalo struggled in Thursday’s 6-3 loss to the Predators, but since the start of January he’s played much better. He will be one of Boston’s most important players the rest of the season because Swayman can’t play all 21 games remaining.
Making the playoffs would be a great accomplishment for the Bruins, especially when you factor their lack of elite-level talent. The fact they rank highly in so many offensive stats with only one high-end forward (David Pastrnak) is extraordinary.
But the Bruins weren’t going to mortgage their future at Friday’s trade deadline just to barely make the playoffs and get bounced in the first round. Speeding up the retool when it’s going better than planned would have been shortsighted. The goal is to be a real Stanley Cup contender, and the Bruins right now are closer to that tier than they were at this time last year.
And with a bunch of quality prospects, five first-round picks over the next three drafts and around $17 million in projected salary cap space this summer, Sweeney has plenty of ammo to potentially take a huge swing in the offseason that massively improves the roster.
“There will be opportunity,” Sweeney said. “And I have to take advantage of it, collectively with our staff.”