Boston Bruins newly-inked forward Tanner Jeannot made The Athletic’s list of worst contracts heading into the 2025-26 season.
The Bruins signed Jeannot to a five-year, $17 million contract this offseason. The 28-year-old was coming off a two-year, $5.33 million contract originally signed with the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Lightning then moved Jeannot to the Los Angeles Kings, where he played last season.
In 67 games during the 2024-25 season, Tanner Jeannot scored seven goals and totaled 13 points. He added 89 penalty minutes while playing predominantly a bottom-six role.
That’s why Jeannot’s new contract with the Bruins raised some eyebrows. It also sparked this comment in The Athletic:
"In a summer filled with weird deals as a result of teams having more money than they knew what to do with, Jeannot’s deal was one of the weirdest."
The comment stems from The Athletic calling Jeannot a “replacement level” player. The publication also added that Jeannot first fooled the Lightning into signing him first, with the Bruins now falling prey, as well.
Aside from a 24-goal season with the Nashville Predators during the 2021-22 season, Jeannot has not scored more than seven times in a full season. His career average in points hovers around 14 per season.
As such, his $3.4 million cap hit has prompted The Athletic to declare Jeannot’s contract as the 10th worst in the NHL.
Bruins Getting Negative Value for Jeannot’s Contract
The Athletic estimates that Jeannot’s contract has a market value of $0.8 million. In other words, the Bruins should have signed Jeannot to a contract with an $800K AAV. That situation means that Jeannot’s contract has a total surplus value of -$13 million.
The massive overpay signals that the Bruins have taken a substantial risk on a player who has not proven he’s worth the contract’s AAV or length. Perhaps there’s a chance Jeannot turns things around in Boston.
But as it stands, the Bruins can expect to lose most of the contract’s value. It remains to be seen if Jeannot’s AAV will get in the way if the Bruins choose to trade him at some point down the road.
Jeannot’s Net Rating Concerningly Low
The Athletic’s Net Ratings show Tanner Jeannot at a concerningly low level. His total -7.3 Net Rating shows Jeannot at the bottom of most areas measured in the rating.
Jeannot’s biggest drawback is his offensive game. His -7.0 rating ranks him at 16%. His biggest offensive upside is on the power play with a 42% ranking.
From there, Jeannot’s offensive game plummets. He barely cracks 25% in other areas, maintaining his average rating around 16%.
Defensively, the Bruins get a slightly better player. Jeannot’s -0.4 Defensive Rating seems more encouraging as compared to his offensive rating. The best area in Jeannot’s offensive rating is his 5-on-5 play, where he gets a 70% ranking. Beyond that, he gets a 17% ranking for the difficulty of opponents he faces.
As such, the Bruins won’t be getting a top matchup player. They’re getting a fourth-line grinder who mostly matches up with other fourth-liners. Potentially, a more prominent role in Boston could boost Jeannot’s game.
But until that happens, Tanner Jeannot’s contract will remain the subject of scrutiny for seasons to come.