One free agent the Boston Bruins should already regret signing

Boston Bruins fans everywhere should be heaving a sigh of relief. Yeah, losing Hampus Lindholm is a downer, but the upside is that they’re in third place in what is becoming an increasingly competitive Atlantic Division once again with 18 points prior to Wednesday’s slate of games. 

That’s huge, but it doesn’t yet mean the Bruins should be finished adding talent to their team. This past offseason, Boston seemed to have added one piece to their puzzle, but so far in 2024-25, that puzzle piece hasn’t panned out in a way we would have liked.

Yeah, you may say it’s still too premature for me to claim that there’s one free agent from the 2024 class the Bruins should already regret bringing into the fold, but it’s getting tough to make a case for Nikita Zadorov. I was rather happy to see Zadorov join teammate Elias Lindholm in Boston, and part of me felt there was a good chance the Bruins would make an ultra-serious Cup run with the blueliner in town. 

So, what’s been up with Zadorov’s play? He contributes to scoring, which is good, with five assists in 17 contests. He’s also been physical, clocking in 52 hits at the moment. He’s also blocking shots and logging a fair amount of ice time. 

Nikita Zadorov has been a liability so far with the Bruins

For one, it’s been a marathon of turnovers when Zadorov’s on the ice, with the blueliner committing 22 giveaways so far compared to just one takeaway. Last season, Zadorov passed the puck to the wrong team just 32 times to go with a solid 17 takeaways. Not bad, right?

He’s also been penalty-prone for a while now and has thus far racked up 29 minutes in the box. This was an issue for Zadorov last season with the Calgary Flames and Vancouver Canucks, when he finished the season with 125 penalty minutes, and in case you’re wondering, he’s on track to reach 140 at the moment. 

Now, I will concede some points to where Zadorov has been playing well, which has been his presence on the ice at even strength, in which he’s only seen nine goals go into the net for the opposing team. That has led to an on-ice save percentage of 93.5, so at least he’s brought some hope. 

But, overall, championship teams don’t constantly have someone pulling them back, and it’s exactly what Zadorov has been doing early. That said, you can be a great player for a team, but making crucial mistakes at crucial times is the fastest way for a franchise to regret going through the burden of bringing you in.