Bruins 2023 Free Agents, Draft Targets, Offseason Guide After NHL Playoff Loss
The Boston Bruins' historic 2022-23 season has officially come to an end.
The Black and Gold were eliminated from the 2023 Stanley Cup playoffs with a shocking and historic first-round loss to the Florida Panthers in seven games, which means it's time for the franchise to begin preparing for the 2023-24 campaign.
Boston put together the most impressive regular season in NHL history, setting the league records for most wins and points in a single season. With that, they entered the postseason with astronomically high expectations to bring home the Stanley Cup for the first time since 2011.
With no championship to show for their efforts, the Bruins are going to have numerous decisions to make entering the 2023-24 season.
That being said, it's time to take a look at the team's free agents, some draft targets and what to expect moving forward.
Free Agents
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Unrestricted free agents: Patrice Bergeron, Tyler Bertuzzi, Tomรกลก Nosek, Garnet Hathaway, David Krejฤรญ, Dmitry Orlov, Connor Clifton, Nick Foligno, Chris Wagner, Anton Stralman
Restricted free agents: Trent Frederic, Jakub Lauko, Jeremy Swayman
The Bruins would love to re-sign all of their pending free agents this summer for another shot at the Stanley Cup, but it's just not going to happen.
Players like Patrice Bergeron and David Krejฤรญ should be a priority for Bruins general manager Don Sweeney, but it's possible both players, in addition to Nick Foligno, could retire this summer.
Beyond the veteran trio, the Black and Gold should look to maintain the services of Tyler Bertuzzi, Garnet Hathaway and Connor Clifton. Retaining Jeremy Swayman, a restricted free agent, speaks for itself.
Bertuzzi, who was acquired by the Bruins at the 2022-23 season's trade deadline, was highly impressive in his short stint in Boston, notching four goals and 12 assists for 16 points in 21 regular-season games.
The left winger added five goals and five assists in the postseason and demonstrated the ability to mesh well with whomever he plays with, including David Pastrลรกk, Pavel Zacha and Charlie Coyle.
Hathaway, who was also acquired at the trade deadline, played more of a depth role for the Bruins, notching four goals and two assists for six points in 24 games. He added no goals and one assist in the postseason.
The 31-year-old mostly played on a gritty fourth-line alongside Trent Frederic and A.J. Greer, and he was arguably the team's best role player.
Clifton, meanwhile, had the best season of his career in 2022-23, notching five goals and 18 assists for 23 points in 78 games. He added no goals or assists in the playoffs.
The right-shot defenseman took a significant step in the right direction and seemingly scratched the surface of his potential. Unfortunately, retaining his services is a bit unrealistic given the fact he'll want a considerable raise from the $1 million he earned in 2022-23.
2023 Draft Targets
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The Bruins are going to be extremely limited in the 2023 NHL draft.
Boston doesn't have a first- or second-round selection in the upcoming draft and won't make a selection until the third round after trading away draft picks for Garnet Hathaway, Dmitry Orlov and Hampus Lindholm over the last few seasons.
These are their current selections in the 2023 draft:
- One third-round pick
- One fourth-round pick
- One sixth-round pick
- Two seventh-round picks
Considering the Bruins don't have many draft selections this year, it's hard to say who specifically they should target.
Boston has some impressive defensive prospects waiting in the wings in Mason Lohrei and Jack Ahcan, but they could use some more strong offensive prospects to go alongside Fabian Lysell and Brett Harrison.
Free-Agent Targets
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The Bruins aren't going to have much money to spend in free agency, but it's clear they'll need to retool their offense depending on who opts to stay and who opts to retire or sign elsewhere.
If Patrice Bergeron and/or David Krejฤรญ decide to hang up the skates, the Bruins are going to need another veteran two-way center, and that's where Ryan O'Reilly comes in.
O'Reilly spent the 2022-23 campaign with the St. Louis Blues and Toronto Maple Leafs, notching 16 goals and 14 assists for 30 points in 53 games. Those numbers are quite underwhelming and well below his standard, but he experienced a resurgence during the second half of the season in Toronto, notching four goals and seven assists for 11 points in 13 games.
Additionally, O'Reilly has been a consistent 20-plus goal scorer and 50-plus point getter over his 14-year career, and he's one of the strongest faceoff guys in the NHL, winning 55.8 percent of them over his career.
Ivan Barbashev would also be an intriguing option for Boston, as he's a fairly young center who has been quite impressive offensively over the last few seasons after flying under the radar in his first three or four NHL campaigns.
Barbashev spent the 2022-23 season with the Blues and Vegas Golden Knights, notching 16 goals and 29 assists for 45 points in 82 games. However, he only won 38.2 percent of his faceoffs, which is well below his 42.4 percent career mark.
If the Bruins feel Barbashev could improve at the faceoff dot, he would be a nice addition for the franchise in 2023-24 and perhaps beyond.
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