Former Bruins forward off to a scorching start with new team

A former Bruins rugged forward is off to a strong start with his new team.
Pittsburgh Penguins v Anaheim Ducks
Pittsburgh Penguins v Anaheim Ducks | Sean M. Haffey/GettyImages

When Boston Bruins general manager Don Sweeney sold at the trade deadline back in March, he moved some big-name players. Some other players were not going to be brought back, and Sweeney sold high on some of them.

One of those players was Justin Brazeau. The rugged forward had a career year in 2024-25 in his 57 games with the Bruins. He had 10 goals and 10 assists in 57 games played, which drew a lot of interest from contenders around the NHL.

One of those teams was the Minnesota Wild, who struck the night before the deadline and acquired Brazeau for Marat Khusnutdinov and Jakub Lauko. When he went to the Wild, Brazeau didn't meet expectations over the final 19 games with one goal and two points. That wasn't anywhere near that he was accomplishing with the Black and Gold.

After an underwhelming finish to the regular season and a disappointing playoff, Brazeau hit free agency and signed a deal with the Pittsburgh Penguins for two years and $3 million. It's early in the season, but Brazeau is off to a scorching start in the Steel City.

Former Bruins forward off to scorching start with Penguins

It's very early in the season, but Brazeau is making his presence felt early in Pittsburgh's lineup. In four games, he has four goals after opening the scoring in Tuesday night's 4-3 loss to the Anaheim Ducks. He scored two goals in the season-opening win over the New York Rangers, then had a goal two nights later in a 4-3 win over the New York Islanders.

Good for Brazeau for having a solid start to the season for the Penguins. He has four goals i four games. Is that sustainable? No, but he is giving them the offense they desperately need. Brazeau was not going to be re-signed in Boston after last season, and that was compounded even more by the offseason moves Sweeney made. He is carving out a role with the Penguins for a team that is just like the Bruins, stuck between trying to contend and figuring out of they are retooling on the fly. Right now, the latter feels like where both teams are.

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