Is The Boston Bruins' Retool Complete Or Does It Need One More Year?
The Atlantic Division may be the NHL's most improved division this summer.
The Toronto Maple Leafs and Florida Panthers made stunning roster and management changes. The Tampa Bay Lightning, Montreal Canadiens and Buffalo Sabres are going to be very good teams next season.
The Ottawa Senators and Detroit Red Wings also have designs on a Stanley Cup playoff spot. So it will be extremely tough for an Atlantic team to make the playoffs.
But the one Atlantic team we haven't mentioned is the Boston Bruins. The Bruins had a surprisingly solid 2025-26 season, finishing with the Atlantic's fourth-best record. It looked like the Bs were in the midst of a bounce-back season that only required a roster retool rather than a full rebuild.
Why The Bruins Can't Be Satisfied With Their Off-Season Yet
The Bruins have made some solid moves this summer, but they shouldn't be done yet.
The Bruins have $5.3 million in salary cap space, but Sweeney may hold on to it to address issues that arise during the season. But from our perspective, Boston is failing to keep up with the Joneses in the Atlantic. The Bruins need generational talent for their new generation, and if they don't get that, they'll go into the 2026-27 campaign as long shots to be as good as or better than they were last season.
The Atlantic is more competitive, but the Bruins haven't added enough skill to remain a playoff team. Pastrnak is a terrific talent, but the truth is Boston doesn't have enough Grade-A skill to run with the Atlantic teams that have much better depth than the Bruins.
Boston isn't going to plummet to the bottom of the standings next season, but they're also not going to be contending for a President's Trophy as the NHL's best regular-season team.
NHL Prospect Pool Overview '26-27: Boston Bruins Pipeline Headlined By Hagens and Friends
The Boston Bruins appear to be a little weak in terms of their depth of prospects on the back end. Tony Ferrari breaks down the Bruins' prospect pool in his NHL prospect pool overview series.
Until Boston acquires that kind of foundational talent, the Bruins will be on the periphery of the playoff race.
The reality is that Boston is in the lower-middle tier of the league. And while it's reassuring for Bruins fans to see the team fighting to be a playoff team, the Bruins still have a long way to go before they'll be regarded as a true championship-caliber squad.
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This story was originally published July 12, 2026 at 2:00 PM.