Coming off a frustrating 2024-25 season that saw the Boston Bruins finish tied with the Philadelphia Flyers for last place in the Eastern Conference, general manager Don Sweeney hit free agency hard and added some interesting pieces to his roster. His goal was to make the Black and Gold tougher to play against.
For one season, that worked, as the Bruins were a surprise playoff team as the first Eastern Conference wild-card. However, with the rest of the conference and Atlantic Division getting better, it's not sustainable for the Black and Gold going forward. With that said, let's re-grade Sweeney's 2025 free agent class.
Tanner Jeannot
This was seen as a brutal contract when it was signed, but it really hasn't turned out that way after just one year. Yes, there are more years left on it, but Tanner Jeannot signed a five-year contract with an AAV of $3.4 million. In 77 games, he had six goals and 16 assists in 2025-26 and became a staple in the bottom six for first-year coach Marco Sturm. The one question is whether or not he can continue this during his time in Boston.
Grade: A-
Sean Kuraly
It was a little surprising that Sweeney went down the road of bringing back center Sean Kuraly. He was signed to a two-year contract for $3.7 million. He centered the Black and Gold's fourth line and was the same sandpaper-grinding forward the Black and Gold have been looking for. He has one more season remaining and is the perfect fourth-line center for this team. His production numbers are not going to open a lot of eyes, but he does some of the little things that Sturm needs done.
Grade: B-
Mikey Eyssimont
Another veteran forward brought in for the bottom of the lineup was former Tampa Bay Lightning forward Mikey Eyssimont. Boston fans know him well from the Bruins/Lightning battles over the years. He ended up being a scratch for a good chunk of the season as well as the playoffs; despite making a small amount of money, he had eight goals and 10 assists. It'll be interesting to see where he ends up in camp.
Grade: C+
Jonathan Aspirot
This might have been the most surprising in terms of the role he played. Defenseman Jonathan Aspirot signed for one year and $775,000, and he ended up playing well with Charlie McAvoy as his partner. Boston took a flyer on him, and it paid off in terms of the role he played. He was inked to a two-year extension in January and should be a key part of the defense with McAvoy suspended for the first six games of the season.
Grade: A-
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