There are many needs that the Boston Bruins have this summer when it comes to improving their roster for the 2026-27 season. The front office made some comments last week that they knew there was a need for more talent on the roster.
The needs the Black and Gold have are for a top center, a right-shot defenseman, and a goal-scoring wing. Addressing all of those needs is going to be easier said than done. When it comes to the center position, it's going to be a very thin free agent class, which is not good news for Bruins general manager Don Sweeney.
An already thin class got thinner on Tuesday with a former Boston center coming off the market and re-signing with his current team.
Columbus Blue Jackets re-sign former Bruins center Charlie Coyle to an extension
Just when you thought that things were going to get crazy on July 1, when free agency begins, it began Tuesday when the Columbus Blue Jackets agreed to a six-year, $36 million extension with an AAV of $6 million. If that's going to be the price for a 34-year-old center in free agency, it's a good thing he signed with Columbus and not Boston.
Coyle was traded by the Bruins to the Colorado Avalanche at the trade deadline in March of 2025. The fit in Denver didn't work, and he was shipped to the Blue Jackets last summer. In 82 games, he had 20 goals and 38 assists, averaging 18:03 in time on ice in 2025-26.
He played so well that Columbus is bringing him back at a crazy number for likely the rest of his career. This seems like a panic move for an organization that missed out on the playoffs again this past season. Dishing out $6 million for the next six seasons to a player who will be 40 years old when it expires is certainly a decision. Imagine if Sweeney made this move today?
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