When Boston Bruins general manager Don Sweeney had a fire sale at the 2025 NHL trade deadline, he shipped out some big-name players. One of those players who moved was defenseman Brandon Carlo, to the Toronto Maple Leafs.
That left an opening on the backend of the defense, and in a subtle, out-of-nowhere trade, Sweeney turned to the Buffalo Sabres to acquire right-shot blueliner Henri Jokiharju. At the time, it was seen as a move to add some depth on the backend to close out the 2024-25 season. Little did anyone know what was about to come.
Last summer, the Bruins announced that they had signed Jokiharju to a three-year contract with an AAV of $3 million. That seemed like a quick signing and one that may not age well over time, but little did anyone know that it wouldn't age as quickly as it did.
Henri Jokiharju's 2025-26 regular season
Jokiharju played well with Nikita Zadorov after coming over to Buffalo to close out the 2024-25 season, but things took a different turn this past season under first-year coach Marco Sturm. Jokiharju only played in 41 regular-season games, which meant he spent half the season as a scratch in the press box. That's a lot of dough to be earning sitting on the ninth floor on a nightly basis.
In the 41 games Jokiharju played in, he had two goals and 13 assists while averaging 17:48 a game. Boston's defense was hit hard by injuries this past season, and Jokiharju still only managed 41 games. If there is a trade candidate this summer to try and unload on defense, it's Jokiharju.
Henri Jokiharju's 2026 postseason
Boston was matched up with Jokiharju's former team, the Sabres, in the first round, but the 29-year-old and first-round pick of the Chicago Blackhawks, 29th overall in the 2017 Entry Draft, played in just two games, the final two of the series. He averaged 15:50 in time on the ice in Games 5 and 6 and didn't find his way onto the scoresheet. It remains to be seen what his future is in Boston as we inch closer to the 2026-27 season.
Henri Jokiharju's 2025-26 Grade: C+
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