By: Jake Ferraro | Follow me on Twitter/X @18Jxxx18
The Boston Bruins are 22 days away from beginning their 2026-27 regular season against the New York Rangers at TD Garden. The Bruins are eager to prove doubters wrong after being eliminated by the Buffalo Sabres in the first round of the 2026 playoffs. As the National Hockey League is weeks away from starting, rumors around trades are still happening, and the Bruins were recently named a destination for Seattle Kraken forward Shane Wright.
Two days ago, Dave Jenkins of NHL Trade Rumor wrote an article titled “Boston Bruins Trade Rumors: Should Boston Make Its Move for Shane Wright.” The future of Wright with the Kraken is uncertain, despite his current focus on playing for Seattle. However, Jenkins discussed the Bruins as a potential destination for Wright, though there are some concerns about doing so.
“A user-created PuckGM proposal circulated recently that would send Wright and a Seattle draft pick to Boston for Casey Mittelstadt and future draft capital,” Jenkins said. “There is no indication that proposal represents actual negotiations between the Boston Bruins and Seattle Kraken.”
Jenkins mentioned in his article that if general manager Don Sweeney can acquire Wright at a low buy before training camp, the Bruins should do so. At 22, Wright still has potential to be better. After all, Wright was the fourth overall draft pick of the 2022 NHL Draft and has recorded 78 points in 169 games in his career. Wright also has one year remaining on his contract at an AAV of $886,666, which is really cheap for a forward on an expiring restricted contract who still has potential. Wright is poised to deliver a huge season, setting himself up for a nice new contract.
Even with his upside, there’s concern about Wright as a trade target for Boston. In the 2024-25 season, his true rookie season, Wright broke out, recording 19 goals, 25 assists, and 44 points in 79 games. However, Wright disappointed last season, recording 27 points in 74 games. Wright’s play last season has Seattle concerned about whether he is worth keeping for the future.
Mittelstadt is worthy of being noted in the potential trade. Mittelstadt has one year remaining on his contract at an AAV of $5.75 million. At 27, Mittelstadt provided solid depth up front last season in his first true season in Boston by recording 42 points in 71 games. If the Bruins acquired Wright and traded away Mittelstadt, the team would get more cap space, which would be crucial for one player: Pavel Zacha.
Zacha is the Bruins’ biggest free agent for next offseason, and the Bruins have under $5.4 million in cap space as of now on Puckpedia. Given how NHL AAVs have gone up this offseason, Zacha is due for a huge pay raise in his next contract. Zacha could be due to receive an AAV of around $8.5-9 million for his newest contract. Trading Mittelstadt for Wright would help the Bruins free up cap space to pay Zacha as much as they can, if they want to now.
An issue with the proposed trade involving Wright is that Seattle would get draft capital from Boston. Currently, the Bruins own two first-round and two fourth-round draft picks in 2027, but don’t have any in the second, third, or fifth rounds. In 2028, the Bruins have two fourth-round draft picks and own all their other draft picks that year, but not their third-round pick. The Bruins may not want to give up future firsts for a player who recently had a disappointing season.
In the end, a fresh start out of Seattle may be needed for Wright to improve his game. The Kraken’s direction on whether Wright will remain with the team is uncertain. The Bruins can pursue a young player with potential, but if they do, the value for Wright needs to be right. Wright showed he has the potential to be good, as he did in the 2024-25 season, but he desperately needs to bounce back from last season’s struggles.
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