By: Tom Calautti | Follow me on Twitter @TCalauttis
The 2-24-25 regular season is finally over, and the Boston Bruins are on the precipice of one of the most crucial offseasons in franchise history. After a year filled with frustration and unmet expectations, it was finally time for management to address the public. This morning, CEO and Alternate Governor Charlie Jacobs, President and Alternate Governor Cam Neely, and General Manager Don Sweeney met the media to discuss just what went wrong. Here are the five biggest takeaways from their end-of-season press conference:
Future of Management
One of the most prominent talking points heading into this offseason has been the job security of Cam Neely and Don Sweeney. Given the failure of this season and the lack of deep postseason runs in recent years, it’s fair for fans to question whether they’ll be here in the long term. Charlie Jacobs addressed this issue in his opening statement, making it abundantly clear that Boston’s current management group has his support.
“Cam and Don, in their respective roles of President and General Manager, have proven that they can take a franchise that has missed the playoffs and build one for sustained success,” said Jacobs. “It is my opinion that we can do it again, and this time get over the hump and become a Stanley Cup Champion.”
Jacobs’ words aren’t a surprise given how strongly he’s backed the duo of former Bruins in the past. It was just seven days ago that he said in an open letter to fans that “It’s hard for me to wrap my head around why people call for [Neely and Sweeney’s] heads.” He left no doubt that he has confidence in both men and trusts them to return the team to prominence.
A more interesting part of the press conference came later on when Sweeney was asked about his contract and future with the team. The general manager confirmed that he has one year left on his contract and that an extension hasn’t been finalized.
I’m still contemplating what the best course of action is, but as I mentioned, I really feel like Don has done a good job here for the most part,” said Neely. “Obviously, the year that we had is a huge disappointment, and that falls on all of us, not just Don, that falls on all of us.”
Despite the vote of confidence and his praise of Sweeney, Neely acknowledged that no extension is in place. He told reporters, “I’ll figure it out in the near future, whether we’re going to re-sign Don or not.”
This quote set off my antenna because of how this organization has managed expiring contracts in recent memory. They failed to reach an extension with Jim Montgomery before the 2024-25 season, and it contributed (in part) to last season blowing up in their face. They fired Peter Chiarelli in April of 2015 and were caught completely unprepared for the following draft.
It’s possible that Sweeney and Neely are working towards an extension and already have a framework in place. However, if they don’t, and Sweeney is genuinely on a one-year tryout, it’s a scary notion. We’ve seen what happens to this team and this organization when they don’t have their affairs in order, and if their plan is just ‘wait and see,’ it could be catastrophic.
Drafting and Development
A significant area of concern among fans and media this season was the way management handled their prospects and younger players. It’s no secret that Boston’s current management group has favored veteran experience over exciting potential. Today, reporters had the opportunity to press Neely and Sweeney on just how they plan to improve their drafting and development, and it resulted in the most interesting back-and-forth of the day.
Kevin Paul Dupont of The Boston Globe, before asking his question to Sweeney, commented that drafting and development “haven’t been up to expectations.” Neely immediately interjected and asked Dupont to elaborate on that point. What resulted was an almost three-minute diatribe from Cam Neely on the ‘narrative’ surrounding Boston’s drafting and development.
Neely went all the way back to the infamous 2015 NHL Draft and acknowledged that Sweeney was put in an untenable situation, then broke down exactly how management should’ve handled those three selections in the first round. To Neely’s credit, he did acknowledge that the organization needs to improve in that area, but continued to emphasize that the ‘narrative’ was overblown.
Trying to describe the back-and-forth doesn’t do it justice; please view the clip below for the whole experience.
My ears perked up when Sweeney addressed the evaluation of young players and their inclusion in the NHL lineup. Many Bruins fans were frustrated when players like Georgii Merkluov languished in Providence, despite leading the team in scoring for the past three seasons. They were also frustrated when players like Matt Poitras and Fabian Lysell were promoted and then relegated to bottom-six roles. Sweeney reaffirmed his process for young players getting a shot, and it’s exactly what fans were afraid to hear.
We’re not just going to plug a player in because he’s young and exciting,” said Sweeney. “They have to earn their stripes.”
Help on the Wing
After witnessing a season where management dealt away three of the team’s most popular and productive forwards, the biggest issue on my mind going into this morning was how management intends to improve this roster. They didn’t exactly lay out a step-by-step roadmap of how it will happen, but Boston’s brass did give us some insight into what they are hoping to do.
Sweeney was quick to point out that the team needs to make improvements on offense. Given the long-term commitment to Elias Lindholm and the midseason acquisition of Casey Mittelstadt, he highlighted the wings as an area where the team can target improvement.
“We have to find, either through the development of our current players, some extra scoring potential,” said Sweeney. “And we have to probably address the wing positions. That will deepen the scoring ability that showed up ineffectively this year.”
Couple these quotes with a Jacobs comment about ‘additions we intend to make in the summer,’ and it becomes clear that the Bruins intend to jump right back into the free agent pool. Big-name wingers like Mitch Marner (27-75-102), Nikolaj Ehlers (24-39-63), and Brock Boeser (25-25-50) are available on the unrestricted market, and the Bruins have almost $29 million in cap space. Boston could open up their checkbook and look to add high-end wingers that way.
They could also go after some of the tantalizing restricted free agents set to hit the market this offseason. It would cost them picks in addition to cash, but with 11 picks in the first three rounds of the next three drafts, the Bruins could look to scoop up rising stars like Matthew Knies (29-29-58) or Marco Rossi (24-36-60).
No matter which path they choose, it feels like Boston will once again go big game hunting this summer.
Increasing Ticket Prices
One of the more under-the-radar headlines to emerge from this is the organization’s announcement that it will be raising ticket prices by four percent next season. After opening the press conference by calling this season an embarrassment and apologising to fans for the product on the ice, Jacobs was asked if those price increases would still be going into effect.
Boston’s CEO seemed a bit flustered by the question and gave a lengthy answer about the economy and the need to pay for essentials like security and electricity. He made sure to highlight that a portion of the revenue generated from ticket prices is reinvested in the team, but ultimately confirmed that prices will still be increasing.
“Ticket pricing is a sensitive subject,” answered Jacobs. “We’ve made our decision, we’ve raised our ticket prices, and no, we will not be rescinding that.”
It’s a difficult question for Jacobs to answer, and it probably needs more than a one-minute and nineteen-second answer to address properly, but either way, it just doesn’t sound good. Ask any Bruins fan on Causeway Street, and they’ll tell you that it’s becoming increasingly challenging to afford tickets to the game. I understand that it’s a business, and the team needs to generate revenue to invest in itself. Still, this answer felt remarkably insincere and short-sighted, given the team’s performance this season.
Health of Hampus Lindholm
There weren’t many positives to come out of today’s presser, but perhaps the most optimistic bit of news came regarding the health of defenseman Hampus Lindholm. The Swedish defender suffered a fractured patella on November 17th against the St. Louis Blues and was held out for the rest of the season as a result.
When pressed about the vitality of the roster and the team’s prospects going forward, both Neely and Sweeney were eager to highlight the value of Lindholm to the group and the impact he has on the team. Sweeney was happy to report that Lindholm is expected to make a full recovery and doesn’t expect any restrictions ahead of training camp.
Before his injury, you could make the argument that Lindholm was Boston’s best player early in the season. His dual ability to suppress scoring chances in the defensive zone and contribute offensively makes him one of the most valuable pieces on this team. Having him back and healthy will allow the coaching staff to favorably deploy veterans like Charlie McAvoy and Nikita Zadorov, as well as aid the struggling special teams units.
A player returning from injury isn’t as exciting as an offseason addition or a high draft pick. Still, it’s the type of move that allows the team to reorganize its parts and re-establish the stability it so desperately needed last season.
Other Takeaways
- Sweeney seemed excited about the future of Morgan Geekie and said the team wants to extend him long-term.
- When asked about goaltending, Sweeney acknowledged that Joonas Korpisalo probably should’ve started more games.
- It appears that a majority of the head coaches on the Bruins’ shortlist are currently coaching teams in the playoffs. Sweeney discussed wanting to evolve offensively and an ability to communicate with young players as attributes he looks for in a coach.
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