Bruins roster reset: Salary cap space, free agents entering offseason
[ad_1]
Bruins roster reset: Salary cap space, free agents entering offseason originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
The Boston Bruins’ run in the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs is over.
They were eliminated by the Florida Panthers in Game 6 of their Eastern Conference second-round series Friday night at TD Garden.
Overall, it was a successful season for the Original Six franchise. After losing so many important players (such as Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci) last summer, the Bruins were expected by most experts and fans to be a wild card team in 2023-24, but they actually were in contention for the Presidents’ Trophy right up until the last couple days of the regular season.
They also advanced to the second round of the playoffs for the first time since 2021 after beating the rival Toronto Maple Leafs in a dramatic overtime of Game 7 in Round 1.
The Bruins have a good foundation to work with entering the summer, but there are plenty of roster weaknesses to address. One that immediately comes to mind is getting another top-six forward, either a natural goal scorer or a playmaking center.
Here’s some important information to keep in mind as we get ready for what should be a busy offseason for the Bruins.
Salary cap
The salary cap for the 2023-24 season was $83.5 million, but for the Bruins it was essentially $79 million because they had $4.5 million in cap overages from Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci’s 2022-23 contracts.
The salary cap ceiling is expected to rise $4.2 million to $87.7 million for the 2024-25 campaign. Using that number, the Bruins are projected to have $20.9 million in cap space this summer, per CapFriendly. This number could increase if the Bruins make a trade or two. For example, trading Linus Ullmark (and his $5 million cap hit) would free up some extra room.
The Bruins had almost no salary cap space last offseason and were forced to go bargain bin shopping in free agency as a result. Bruins general manager Don Sweeney deserves credit for finding some good…
[ad_2]
