By: Eamonn McLean | Follow me on Twitter/X @EamonnMcLean44
The Boston Bruins have reportedly made their first trade of the 2025 National Hockey League offseason this afternoon, acquiring the rights to Defenseman Victor Soderstrom from the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for Ryan Mast and a seventh-round draft pick. A native of Skutskar, Sweden, Soderstrom was originally drafted 11th overall in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft by the Arizona Coyotes. His rights were traded to the Blackhawks in March as part of a deal that included the rights to Shea Weber.
Soderstrom spent this past season in his home country, playing for Brynas IF, where he registered 37 points in 49 games with a +28 rating. His efforts were good enough to win the Borje Salming Trophy, the award for the best Defenseman in the Swedish Hockey League. In 17 playoff games, he scored a goal and had seven assists, finishing with a +5 rating.
Before this year, Soderstrom had spent parts of four seasons in the Coyotes organization, playing in 53 NHL games, where he had one goal and nine assists. Soderstrom is currently a restricted free agent, and according to his Elite Prospects profile, is under contract for next season in Sweden. Whether or not he will come over to North America remains to be seen, although he recently expressed interest about returning to the NHL.
A sixth-round pick in the 2021 NHL Entry Draft, Ryan Mast played in 37 American Hockey League games this season with the Providence Bruins, recording five assists and a +7 rating. The Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, native is entering the final year of his entry-level contract, and the trade to Chicago should allow him to play closer to home.
So we got another Defense Man who might never play for us