The Boston Bruins signed Elias Lindholm to a long-term contract this past offseason, which gave them a solid three-headed monster down the middle of him, Pavel Zacha, and Charlie Coyle. After the team struggled out of the gates, the front office decided to become sellers at the deadline, which led to Coyle being dealt to the Colorado Avalanche.
It left the Bruins with just two of the centers, and it wasn't pretty down the stretch. While Lindholm formed a new chemistry with David Pastrnak, Zacha was left in no man's land on the second line. It now appears that the Bruins will also be looking to trade Zacha and start fresh down the middle.
Per @TFP Summer Trade Watch List, “#NHLBruins explored the trade market on (Pavel) Zacha during the season. There is belief that Boston is looking, again, at moving him. His 10-team no-trade list turns to an eight-team list July 1.”
— Shawn Hutcheon (@ShawnHutcheon) June 24, 2025
Lindholm and Pastrnak could reunite with Morgan Geekie on the team's first line to start the year, if Geekie re-signs. The Bruins hope to help their center depth through trade or free agency, and keeping Zacha for the third line might not be worth the salary.
There is also a possibility that the Bruins add a center with the seventh overall pick. Still, the chances of that player making an immediate impact and grabbing a roster spot are unlikely.
Marco Sturm and the front office are likely looking at rolling out Lindholm, an added center, Matthew Poitras, and Fraser Minten down the middle. It makes Zacha expendable, and it appears they wanted to complete this deal by the deadline instead of in the offseason.
With Zacha's no-trade list dropping from ten to eight teams on July 1, it wouldn't be surprising to see a deal get done before then. It's hard to see many teams lining up to acquire his services, and the Bruins will want to complete the trade before two more possible teams are eliminated.
The issue is that the Bruins are trading him at his lowest value since joining the team. He had two big seasons to start in Boston with 116 points in 160 games, but his numbers dropped off with 47 in 82 this past season. One thing Zacha does have going for him is his ability to stay healthy, but the front office would like to see more production from a top-six forward.
The fact is, in the Bruins' quest to find more offense, a top-six center with just 47 points isn't a great place to start.