Scouting Report: Bruins Free Transfers Coming in 2024

BOSTON – The Bruins started July on a busy note.

On Monday, the first day of free agency, general manager Don Sweeney signed center Elias Lindholm and defenseman Nikita Zadorov to significant contracts and bolstered the team’s roster with the additions of experienced forwards Max Jones and Riley Tufte.

“It speaks volumes about the commitment of the ownership, first of all, to staying as competitive as possible and putting us in a position, hopefully, if we stay healthy, to get ourselves together,” Sweeney said. “We were very competitive, we didn’t have the success we wanted in the playoffs, and those types of players, I think, are going to help us do that.

“Now, obviously, you have to adjust to that, and some guys have to move forward, and the fact that Matt Poitras came back on the ice today (in development camp) coming off shoulder surgery is a great example of that. They’ve got Mason Lohrei in a position now that allows him to … probably get him into the second unit on the power play and develop his offensive game in a way that he needs to, not necessarily be on skis sometimes, playing 20 minutes a night in a top-pair situation.

“But having those two goals in areas that we independently identified with our scouting staff and then our coaches, and combining what they would like to see in the players that come in here and meet the criteria of two guys that understand our culture and our intentions and want you to come in and join them.”

Let’s take a closer look at B’s new arrivals:

Elias Lindholm, center

Contract: 7 years, $7.75 million AAV

The last team:Vancouver Canucks

Height: 6 feet 1 inch

Libra: 202 pounds

Shoots: Correct

Home town:Boden, Sweden

Birthday:December 2, 1994 (29 years old)

Twitter/Instagram: @lindholmelias

The former fifth overall draft pick (2013) is entering his 12th year.^t NHL campaign. After spending the first five seasons of his career in Carolina, he played the next five seasons in Calgary. Pivot was then traded to Vancouver before the final season of the trade. In 65 games between the Flames and Canucks in the 2023-24 season, he scored 15 goals and 44 points.

“He doesn’t feel like he’s played as well as he could have, and then he went to Vancouver and played really well in the playoffs,” Sweeney said. “It’s a better opportunity for him to go and play with someone we consider an elite player (David Pastrnak) as a top player. And getting him on the power play is really good for us and, ideally, for him.”

“He talked a little bit about the anxiety of being an unrestricted free agent. I think it’s natural as a player to say, ‘OK, who might be interested in me, where do I fit in?’ So I think we checked those boxes in our conversation. In a short period of time. As long as we reinforced that in his mind. I think there’s some overlap, and that’s why he joined our club.”

The Swedish-born player set personal bests in 2021-22, scoring 42 goals and 82 points in 82 games for Calgary, and has eclipsed the 20-goal barrier three times (27 in 2018-19, 29 in 2019-20 and 22 in 2022-23).

“We identified Elias a long time ago in the draft as a player that had a lot of the traits of (Patrice) Bergeron,” Sweeney said. “Congrats to our scouting staff for following those guys and watching them develop … and also recognizing where Elias is in his career and bringing those traits. It was a two-year pursuit, honestly, wondering if he was ever going to get to free agency.

“We had a chance before the deadline to get there, but it didn’t necessarily work out, so when this offer came up we were very happy.”

Before free agency, Sweeney said the Bruins would look to bolster the middle of the ice, especially at the faceoff spot. Lindholm has a 53.5 percent faceoff percentage for his career and 56.4 percent last season.

“Well, that was a luxury for the organization for so long, and the players we had … It was obvious, (Charlie Coyle) kind of fit into the three, but Charlie had a hell of a year last year,” Sweeney said. “(Pavel Zacha) had a really good year last year. (Matt Poitras) was on pace to score 40 points, 30-40 points, so we felt good about that.

“He’s only played in high-line situations, and now he’s got a chance to play with (David Pastrnak). Just like he could play with (Johnny Gaudreau) and (Matthew Tkachuk) … I think the bumper spot on our power play is an area where he’s going to fit in seamlessly in that regard, and he’s winning his draws, so you start to realize … ‘OK, this is kind of what we had that we lacked.’