Going into training camp, there are a lot of questions surrounding the Boston Bruins and the future of some of their young players. Some of the questions surround whether or not they are going to make the roster this season, but also whether or not any are going to be signed to long-term contracts before training camp begins.
That was answered for one player on Tuesday.
The Bruins announced that they have locked up forward Fraser Minten to a seven-year contract extension with an AAV of $7.2 million. This is a big move and one that was necessary for the future of the Bruins. The deal runs through the 2033-34 season.
Bruins make the right decision locking up Fraser Minten
Acquired from the Toronto Maple Leafs at the trade deadline in March of 2025 along with a top-5-protected first-round draft pick and a 2025 fourth-round draft pick. After getting his feet wet at the end of the 2024-25 season following the trade, Minten burst onto the scene with a major breakout season in 2025-26.
The 6-foot-2 center played in all 82 regular-season games for the Black and Gold with 17 goals and 18 assists. He earned the trust of first-year head coach Marco Sturm by drawing some key face-offs late in games last season. He was named the NESN 7th Player Award and has played in 107 NHL games between Boston and Toronto.
Where does Fraser Minten fit into the Bruins lineup?
Now that Minten has been paid as a top-six center, it's time for the 22-year-old to lock down one of those two spots in training camp this month. Currently, based on the roster projections and players under contract, his competition will be Pavel Zacha and Elias Lindholm. If history tells us anything, Lindholm might be the one who moves down to Minten's spot last season as the third-line center. In reality, the Bruins are looking at a seven-plus-million-dollar third-line pivot.
This isn't surprising, as one thing is clear: the Bruins see Minten as a long-term piece down the middle with their centers. There is a lot of room for improvement with his offensive numbers and if he can do that with the salary cap going up, this could end up being a very good long-term deal over the next seven-plus seasons.
There is still the contract with Zacha that needs to be ironed out, and does this extension affect that? Does it raise the price for Zacha, or does it mean he might actually be moved at some point? One bit of pre-camp business is done; now we'll see what's next on Don Sweeney's to-do list.
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