Boston Bruins
The Bruins could place several younger players into featured roles going into the 2026-27 season.
Fraser Minten could carve out a regular role next to David Pastrnak next season. (AP Photo/Noah K. Murray)
July 16, 2026 | 8:21 AM
6 minutes to read
Don Sweeney and the Bruins still have a lot of work to do this offseason.
There is still a glut of blueliners on Boston’s roster, and there’s a strong case to be made that the Bruins could use a bit more scoring punch.
But after a busy start to the offseason that included several trades, Boston’s lineup going into the 2026-27 season is already looking quite different from last year’s overachieving group.
Of course, there are still several dominoes that have yet to fall when it comes to Boston’s ongoing roster retooling.
But with the start of training camp still two months away, here’s our first look at the Bruins’ starting lineup this fall.
FORWARDS
Morgan Geekie – Fraser Minten – David Pastrnak
As tempting as it might be to overload Boston’s top line with the club’s top offseason pickup in J.J. Peterka, we’re opting for Marco Sturm and his staff to balance out the Bruins’ top-six unit with this configuration.
At this point, an offensive cheat code like David Pastrnak should elevate just about any skater stapled to his line. And after back-to-back 30-plus-goal campaigns, it’s wise to keep a shot-first winger like Morgan Geekie next to Pastrnak for the long haul.
Rather than continue to slot a square peg into a round hole with Elias Lindholm at 1C next to Pastrnak, we’re rolling with Boston embracing a youth movement with one of their top talents in Fraser Minten.
Minten’s floor as a steady, 200-foot center has already been well-established. But if he can continue to take steps forward offensively, Minten could develop into a foundational piece of Boston’s reworked core.
Sticking Minten next to Pastrnak stands as a sound way to coax more offense out of Minten.
Great work by both Khusnutdinov and Minten to retrieve the puck and get it over to Pastrnak – who scores his 29th goal of the season.pic.twitter.com/ZLhp2s6vnL
— Conor Ryan (@ConorRyan_93) March 26, 2026
Last year, Minten logged 288 minutes of 5-on-5 ice time next to Pastrnak. Over that stretch, Boston outscored opponents, 22-7.
J.J. Peterka – Pavel Zacha – James Hagens
While any line anchored by Pastrnak should be able to dole out some damage, this second line can also carve up opposing defenses.
Despite a down year in Utah, there’s still a lot to like about what Peterka will bring to Boston as a fleet-footed, dynamic winger with 30-plus-goal upside.
Pavel Zacha — fresh off a career-best 30-goal and 67-point campaign — holds court as a very effective 2C (one who is set for a hefty pay raise next summer).
The true wild card is Hagens, who is expected to start his rookie year on the wing with Boston.
Even with the expected growing pains that Boston’s top prospect will likely battle through next year, Hagens’ edge work and playmaking capabilities are enticing.
Rather than start him off on the third line, leaning into his strengths and putting him on a line with some skilled forwards could help the 19-year-old Hagens hit the ground running as a rookie.
Casey Mittelstadt – Elias Lindholm – Marat Khusnutdinov
If Marco Sturm and Bruins are looking to augment the third line into more of a shutdown grouping, this combination can hold some appeal.
At this point, the writing is on the wall that Elias Lindholm is not the top-six center that the Bruins were hoping he’d be when they signed him to a seven-year contract in July 2024.
But so long as he stays healthy (which remains a primary concern), Lindholm could at least carve out a regular role as an elite faceoff man and shutdown 3C.
Casey Mittelstadt — who drew strong marks from Sturm for his defensive game and board play last season — could be a solid option next to Lindholm, while a fleet-footed forward like Marat Khusnutdinov can bring some pace and potential scoring punch to a line that might be handed a lot of D-zone starts.
Tanner Jeannot – Matt Poitras – Mark Kastelic
The Bruins had one of the better checking lines in the NHL last season, with Tanner Jeannot and Mark Kastelic in particular doling out plenty of welts and chipping in on the scoresheet.
Both pugnacious forwards should be as advertised once again in 2026-27. But as the Bruins try to inject more young talent into their lineup, we have Matt Poitras earning a spot as Boston’s 4C.
It’s going to be a crucial training camp for Poitras to stake his claim as a full-time NHLer, but there’s a lot to like about how Poitras could add more skill and pace to that line if he carves out a spot.
Even if Poitras comes out short, an established veteran like Sean Kuraly still stands as a solid option down the middle — or a very effective spare forward on a rapidly-changing roster.
DEFENSE
Frederic Brunet – Charlie McAvoy
Similar to our previous sentiments about injecting youth up front for Boston, we’ve got the Bruins rolling with another rookie to pair with Charlie McAvoy in 2026-27.
While Jonathan Aspirot did an admirable job in regular minutes with McAvoy, a puck-moving blueliner like Frederic Brunet might have a skillset more attuned to what McAvoy needs to make Boston’s top D-man’s life a bit easier.
Brunet — who Don Sweeney noted last month should be ready to make a push for NHL reps in 2026-27 — may not be a future power-play QB.
Two-way shift from Frederic Brunet, No. 42 in white, begins with his gap control and ends with a net-front goal in the last minute of the first period. Seventh goal of the season for Brunet as he continues to impress. #NHLBruins pic.twitter.com/VvyYFNZZw3
— Bruins Network (@BruinsNetwork) January 18, 2026
But the 6-foot-3 Brunet, similar to Matt Grzelcyk, does a lot of dirty work when it comes to puck retrievals, generating transition plays via crisp first passes, and other unheralded skills that could take some arduous tasks off of McAvoy’s plate.
(It’s worth noting that McAvoy will serve a six-game suspension to open the 2026-27 season, which will throw Boston’s D corps out of sorts in the fall.)
Hampus Lindholm – Will Borgen
It was an inconsistent season from Hampus Lindholm last year, who still looked tentative at times while working his way back from a fractured kneecap suffered during the 2024-25 campaign.
Getting the 32-year-old Lindholm back on track will be imperative for Boston, with a stronger D partner like Borgen serving as a potential remedy.
Borgen isn’t exactly flashy, but the 6-foot-3 blueliner is surprisingly mobile and plays a simple, meat-and-potatoes game that should help plug up some of Boston’s porous D-zone structure.
If Borgen can fit in on Boston’s second D pairing, it could free up Lindholm to be a bit more assertive down the other end of the ice — which is when the veteran skater is often at his best.
Nikita Zadorov – Connor Clifton
There may not be a more entertaining and chaotic D pairing in the NHL than both Zadorov and Clifton — especially when they’re playing to their strengths.
Zadorov had a strong season with Boston in 2025-26, establishing himself as a vocal presence both on and off the ice.
Meanwhile, a familiar face in Clifton should hold plenty of value in a third-pairing role — especially given his blend of hard-nosed hockey and willingness to activate off the blue line when the situation arises.
With Clifton and Borgen added this offseason, this six-man defensive unit currently doesn’t have both Mason Lohrei and Henri Jokiharju in the starting lineup.
Boston could opt to keep both skaters, especially with McAvoy suspended for the first few weeks of the new season.
Still, it seems as though something’s got to give when it comes to Boston moving at least another skater or two off this roster before a new season begins.
GOALTENDING
Jeremy Swayman
Michael DiPietro
No major revelations here. As expected, Jeremy Swayman will earn the lion’s share of reps as Boston’s No. 1 netminder — especially coming off a year where he finished third in Vezina Trophy voting.
But the ascension of Michael DiPietro as Swayman’s backup will also make for a fascinating development as the 2026-27 campaign takes off.
Beyond the obvious cap savings going from Joonas Korpisalo ($3 million cap hit) to DiPietro ($812,500), the 27-year-old goalie has more than earned his shot in the NHL ranks.
DiPietro took home AHL MVP honors with the Providence Bruins in 2025-26, sporting a 34-8-1 record to go along with a .930 save percentage.
Conor Ryan is a staff writer covering the Bruins, Celtics, Patriots, and Red Sox for Boston.com, a role he has held since 2023.
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