There were some tough free agent decisions facing Boston Bruins general manager Don Sweeney this summer. Aside from his RFAs, Boston's boss had two UFAs that he had to make decisions on, forward Viktor Arvidsson and defenseman Andrew Peeke.
Truth be told, one decision was going to be tough, and another one was not going to be that difficult. The tough decision was with Arvidsson after he put up 25 goals and 29 assists in his first season with the Black and Gold after being acquired on July 1, 2025, in a trade with the Edmonton Oilers.
He exceeded expectations, but what was Sweeney going to do with him? He ended up letting him walk, and Arvidsson inked a two-year deal with the Detroit Red Wings with an AAV of $5 million. That was an interesting deal, as Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reported that it was what Boston reportedly offered him. However, the writing was on the wall for Arvidsson in Boston after JJ Peterka was acquired from the Utah Mammoth last week.
As for Peeke and speaking of Utah, things were quiet on his front the first couple of days of free agency, but on Friday, he agreed to a one-year deal with the Mammoth for $1 million, according to Chris Johnston of The Athletic.
Former Bruins defenseman signs with Utah Mammoth
Utah has been a team that has made some very interesting offseason moves to position itself well in the Western Conference. Adding Peeke to their backend on a cheap deal is a low-risk, high-reward move.
Peeke was someone whom the Bruins needed to move on from. They simply needed to upgrade, and that is exactly what Sweeney has done with an influx of right-shot blueliners. There was some thought that Boston might have moved him at the trade deadline, but they held onto him and used him the rest of the season and in the first-round of the playoffs against the Buffalo Sabres.
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