The Boston Bruins have had a somewhat calm offseason after a solid season in which they returned to the postseason. Their year came to an end in round one of the playoffs via the Buffalo Sabres.
The big addition has been bringing in J.J Peterka from the Utah Mammoth. Peterka should provide some more scoring punch to an offense that needs more support for its franchise player David Pastrnak. The team also brought in a couple depth additions to their defense with Will Borgen and Connor Clifton.
In terms of other summer storylines to watch for Boston, the next big one revolves around forward Pavel Zacha. The 29 year old Czech native is due for an extension with the club soon as he heads into a contract year.
Zacha is Coming Off a Career Year
What helps Zacha’s cause in contract negotiations is the fact he is fresh off the best season of his 10 year career. He recorded 30 goals and 35 assists for 65 points in 78 regular season games with the Bruins this past season. He also registered one goal and two assists in six postseason games.
While Zacha’s deal does not expire until conclusion of the 2026-2027 season, he is eligible to be extended as soon as this summer. This could be a wise move for the Zacha camp, considering his strong performance this past year.
Insider Elliotte Friedman spoke about this manner on the latest episode of the 32 Thoughts podcast: “To me one of the most fascinating things that’s gonna happen this offseason is the Pavel Zacha extension; I do think they talked to other teams about him.”
Zacha Could be Moved
As Friedman alluded to with these comments, it is not a given that Zacha extends in Boston. He has drawn interest from other teams around the league. The Bruins could opt to move him while his value at his highest. Since Zacha is entering his prime years, he can command a pretty penny in this rising salary cap era of rich contracts being handed out. He is in line to receive a hefty raise on his current $4.75 million deal.
With that said, it would appear to be in Boston’s best interest to hang onto Zacha if they can. This is not a team that has a ton of depth in their forward core. There is a stark drop-off in talent after Pastrnak on the rotation. The center position is also not an area of strength. Losing Zacha would not help from that regard. Elias Lindholm, Fraser Minten and Sean Kuraly draw behind Zacha in the center pipeline.
Perhaps, the best play for Boston would be to hold off on a Zacha extension for now. By doing so, they can see if Zacha can keep his solid production up or if he drops back down to earth. General manager Don Sweeney would then have a better idea of how Zacha fits into their future core and if he is a piece that needs to be kept around for the long haul or not. It will be interesting to see whether or not that Zacha extension comes this summer or the next.
Pavel Zacha’s Future With Bruins in Question