By: Ryan Bosworth | Follow me on Twitter/X @RyanJBosworth
The Boston Bruins have reportedly been linked to, and even made an offer for Columbus Blue Jackets Winger Kirill Marchenko. Rumors have been swirling of Marchenko’s desire to get out of Columbus, but this is the first time the Bruins have really been mentioned as one of the teams to apparently have made a push for him.
On the latest episode of the 32 Thoughts podcast, released earlier today (9/25/26), Elliotte Friedman reported that he “heard Boston made an offer at one point,” which interestingly aligns with an X post that Marchenko’s agent, Dan Milstein, made recently, which was simple but very cryptic:
Marchenko, 26, is a right winger who broke into the National Hockey League during the 2022-23 season. In his 59 games played during that season, Marchenko recorded 21-4-25 and was a -23.
His next season was a good stepping stone, as he’d record 23-19-42 and was a -5 through 78 games. His best season came in the 2024-25 season, where he registered almost a point per game, playing 79 games and recording 31-43-74, with a plus/minus of +29. He’s a legitimate top-six forward who’s just entering his prime, but he’d absolutely bolster the Bruins’ top-six immediately upon his potential arrival.
A big part of this story comes from Marchenko’s unhappiness with Columbus, as trade rumors began swirling over the summer, with news breaking as far back as the end of July. A lot of teams have been in the mix — it certainly isn’t just Boston — and there’s no clear indication that any sort of move is coming, but, Boston is the only team, or one of the only teams, who have seemingly made an offer for the Russian winger.
Marchenko went somewhat public with his unhappiness with Columbus, as back at the start of the (very short) training camp, he was asked, point-blank, if he wants to play hockey in Columbus, and his answer was pretty telling: “I want to play hockey. It’s all I can say right now.”
With Marchenko’s apparent disdain in Columbus, along with his current contract, which is expiring after the 2026-27 season, Columbus really doesn’t have a choice but to move on from him. They have two options: trade him and get something in return for him, or let him walk for nothing at the end of the season. Dan Milstein went as far as to confirm that Kirill doesn’t plan on playing in Columbus beyond the expiration of his contract.
The flip side of this coin is the Boston Bruins, who would absolutely benefit from an upgrade on their right-wing side. It would allow Morgan Geekie to flip to the left, and Marchenko would slot in nicely on the second-line with Pavel Zacha and Geekie. Now, this is an assumption based on just slotting in Marchenko without considering what the Bruins would have to give up.
I’d be surprised if the potential package didn’t include players that can make an impact on the Blue Jackets’ current roster, as well as some draft capital. You can almost guarantee it’d include something along the lines of Pavel Zacha, Matt Poitras, Mason Lohrei, and several first-round picks. The Bruins would also definitely need to move on from Casey Mittelstadt.
I’d even go as far as saying that Columbus would want one of James Hagens or Fraser Minten in return. If that’s the case, the Bruins should hold on to their assets. However, and it seems like a no-brainer, but, if there’s a deal that would allow Boston to obtain Marchenko and hold on to both Hagens and Minten, and management is able to limit what they’re giving up to something along the lines of Zacha, Lohrei, Poitras, and first-round picks, I think that’s a deal they should absolutely go out and make.
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