Boston’s offseason chessboard: Bruins weigh Pageau blockbuster, circle Boeser in free‑agency, add PP guru Spott to Sturm’s bench

The Boston Bruins have blasted out of the starting blocks of the 2025 off‑season, juggling high‑stakes trade chatter with the New York Islanders, exploring a big‑ticket free‑agent splash for Brock Boeser, and finalizing Marco Sturm’s coaching staff by hiring long‑time NHL assistant Steve Spott. The flurry marks the most aggressive early‑summer posture Boston has shown since Don Sweeney’s first years as general manager and has reignited a fan base still smarting from a second straight first‑round exit.

League insiders say Boston’s initial inquiry about veteran center Jean‑Gabriel Pageau has ballooned into wider conversations that could see picks and prospects change hands at next week’s draft. Multiple reports indicate the Islanders covet a second top‑10 selection—Boston holds No. 7—and may attach Pageau to a package that also dangles defenseman Noah Dobson or restricted‑free‑agent blueliner Alexander Romanov. The Bruins, meanwhile, are mulling whether the 31‑year‑old Pageau’s face‑off and penalty‑kill prowess is worth sacrificing a lottery pick in a class rich in NHL‑ready wingers such as James Hagens, whom New York would love to keep on Long Island.

Pageau’s $5 million cap charge for 2025‑26 is no small consideration for a Bruins club already carrying big numbers for David Pastrňák and Charlie McAvoy. Yet Pageau’s reputation as a “Swiss‑army‑knife” middle‑six center has serious appeal after Pavel Zacha’s postseason fade and Charlie Coyle’s inconsistent usage under Sturm’s predecessor Jim Montgomery. A Boston executive, speaking on background, said the organization is “done patching holes with AHL call‑ups” and wants “trusted, playoff‑tested adults” down the middle. The Bruins have roughly $11 million in projected cap space; attaching salary‑controlled winger Jake DeBrusk—or moving depth defender Derek Forbort—has been floated as a mechanism to make the math work.

Boston’s front office also appears to be monitoring the Brock Boeser sweepstakes. With the 28‑year‑old Vancouver sniper poised to hit unrestricted free agency on July 1, several outlets have linked the Bruins to Boeser as they hunt for a second high‑end finisher to shelter Pastrňák. Boeser’s 40‑goal explosion in 2024 followed by a 25‑goal campaign shortened by blood‑clot complications has made him one of the market’s most intriguing bounce‑back bets. Analysts project a five‑ to six‑year deal in the $7‑million AAV range—lofty, but not impossible if Boston off‑loads salary in any Islanders deal or elsewhere.

Why Boeser? For one, Sturm’s north‑south system relies on quick, one‑touch exits and rapid‑fire slot feeds—an environment Boeser thrived in when Rick Tocchet implemented a similar philosophy in Vancouver. Second, Pastrňák wore down under heavy defensive attention last spring; adding another right‑handed finisher would complicate match‑ups for opponents and allow Sturm to split his artillery across two lines. Boeser’s defensive metrics remain middling, but Bruins management is betting a revitalized power play—and Spott’s arrival—can tip the scales offensively.

Steve Spott’s hire rounds out Sturm’s rookie bench with a coach known for detailed power‑play schematics. While working under Pete DeBoer in Dallas, Spott’s unit finished 12th (20.4 percent) during the regular season before sputtering in the playoffs—the kind of boom‑bust profile that invites both optimism and scrutiny in Boston. Sturm’s brief remarks on the addition were telling: “We want creativity married to accountability,” the coach said Friday. “Steve’s track record shows he can install structure quickly, and players respect the clarity in his reads.” The Bruins limped to 29th on the man advantage last season; ownership views the special‑teams collapse as every bit as damaging as the club’s center‑depth shortcomings.

Spott will collaborate with returning assistants Jay Leach (defense) and Chris Kelly (forwards) while goaltending guru Bob Essensa continues to steer Boston’s most stable position group. Early indications suggest Spott will empower McAvoy to walk the blue line more aggressively, reviving the high‑slot seam‑pass game that made the 2023 Bruins lethal. One intriguing wrinkle: if Boeser signs, Sturm has the option of a double‑right‑shot umbrella featuring Pastrňák on the left‑half wall and Boeser on the right, forcing penalty killers into a pick‑your‑poison scenario unseen in Boston since the days of David Krejčí and Torey Krug.

Stacking Pageau’s veteran reliability, Boeser’s high‑octane ceiling, and Spott’s tactical tweaks would fundamentally transform a roster caught between retool and rebuild labels. Yet every lever carries risk. Pageau’s five‑foot‑ten frame and shot‑blocking style invite durability concerns; Boeser’s medical history is still only months removed from a postseason scare; Spott’s systems, critics note, grew predictable in Dallas when playoff opponents locked down the weak‑side bumper. The Bruins are gambling that a change of scenery—and the relative anonymity of a brand‑new staff—will reinvigorate all three betting slips.

Cap compliance is another hurdle. If Boston grants Boeser a six‑year, $42 million pact (a figure floating among agents) and absorbs Pageau without New York retaining money, Sweeney must shed at least $7‑8 million elsewhere. One solution floated by Sportsnet’s Jeff Marek is attaching DeBrusk or Matt Grzelcyk to the draft‑pick package heading the other way. Boston’s prospect pool—highlighted by goaltender Brandon Bussi and winger Fabian Lysell—could soften the sting, but moving blue‑chip assets contradicts the slow‑build mantra owner Jeremy Jacobs preached in April.

The NHL Draft begins June 27 in Las Vegas, and the consensus in league circles is that anything involving the Bruins and Islanders will break before Commissioner Gary Bettman takes the stage. Should talks collapse, expect Boston to keep Pick 7 and target a cost‑controlled scoring winger—a hedge against losing out on Boeser. Conversely, if Boeser’s camp signals serious Boston interest before free agency opens, Sweeney may feel emboldened to flip the lottery pick for immediate help down the middle, banking on Boeser’s goals to insulate the loss of top‑draft upside.