The 2025 NHL trade deadline has come and gone and for Boston Bruins fans, it was a franchise-altering one. GM Don Sweeney blew things up and traded some long time core pieces and began what fans hope is a retool rather than a full-blown rebuild.
Gone are captain Brad Marchand, forward Charlie Coyle and defenseman Brandon Carlo on Friday in the final hour leading into the 3 o'clock deadline. Other players traded were Max Jones, Trent Frederic, Justin Brazeau and Marc McLaughlin. There were players received in return, some NHL players and some prospects. They got some draft capital. In the end, however, you might need a roster nightly to know just who is dressing for interim coach Joe Sacco.
Boston will play their first game since the trade deadline on Saturday afternoon when they visit the Tampa Bay Lightning in Florida. The Black and Gold have 18 games remaining in the season that is on course for an early trip to the golf course in mid April.
Predicting Boston Bruins lineup following trade deadline
Things are certainly going to be different beginning on Saturday in Tampa Bay. What will things look like over the final six weeks? Let's give it a shot.
Morgan Geekie - Pavel Zacha - David Pastrnak
Casey Mittlestadt - Elias Lindholm - Vinni Lettieri
Jakub Lauko - Matthew Poitras - Cole Koepke
John Beecher - Marat Khusnutdinov - Mark Kastelic
Nikita Zadorov - Andrew Peeke
Mason Lohrei - Ian Mitchell
Parker Wortherspoon - Henri Jokiharju
Jeremy Swayman
Joonas Korpisalo
Where do we begin? On the bright side, Morgan Geekie was someone who Sweeney kept and he keeps his top line intact with Pavel Zacha and David Pastrnak. Geekie is someone who has jelled on the line and already has scored over 20 goals this season. The expectation is that both sides will work hard on a contract extension before free agency begins on July 1.
Casey Mittlestadt, acquired from the Colorado Avalanche in the Coyle trade, is someone who is going to be part of the future and you get the feeling that Sweeney and the front office are hoping to have him breakout on Boston like Zacha and Geekie have after a change of scenery. Elias Lindholm needs to show improvement the rest of the season or it could be a long off-season after signing a huge contract.
Former fan favorite Jakub Lauko returns to the Bruins and should provide some energy in the lineup after coming over from the Minnesota Wild as part of the Brazeau deal. Matthew Poitras faces a big final six weeks cementing his future up the middle and Cole Koepke is playing for a new deal somewhere this summer.
Things are interesting when it comes to the fourth line. John Beecher is a good fourth-line player who is a fast skater and key penalty killer. Bruins' fans know what you're getting with Mark Kastelic, but it'll be worth watching Marat Khusnutdinov who has a potential good upside and could be a nice return as part of the Brazeau deal with Lauko.
Goaltending isn't going to change, for now, but this off-season would be one worth keeping an eye on, and do the Bruins bring back Joonas Korpisalo or try to find a suitor to take him and open just a little more cap space, something that'll need as much as they can get.
The last six weeks are huge for some players who are trying to carve out a role beyond this year, but changes are coming over the summer, and what Sweeney and the front office hope will be a quick retool to return to the postseason in 2025-26 with a new core.