Sweeney Recaps Opening Day of Free Agency

BOSTON - Bruins general manager Don Sweeney met with the media during the opening day of free agency to discuss the acquisition of Pavel Zacha, the club's five free-agent signings, and the latest on negotiations with Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci. Here are the headlines from his late afternoon press conference at Warrior Ice Arena:

Negotiations Continue

Sweeney said that "nothing's changed" when it comes to negotiations with Bergeron and Krejci since he last spoke of the talks during the introduction of new coach Jim Montgomery on Monday afternoon. Discussions with both veteran centerman regarding their potential returns to the Black & Gold, Sweeney said, are ongoing.
"There's no update as of right now in terms of finalizing anything," said Sweeney, who added that the uncertainty regarding both negotiations did not affect his approach as free agency opened at noon on Wednesday.
"As I referenced the other day, I think we're in a really good place with Patrice, just the timing and working out the details of his contract and allowing him to declare he's good to go. Could be any timeframe there. Just working through some of the stuff, letting this day pass and, again, he's the only one who's going to make that final announcement, because he's the one with the final say.
"And David Krejci, we've had numerous discussions throughout the day. Going to try to continue to try to find some common ground there. Remains positive, but I just don't have a clear-cut answer for you.
Sweeney added that there is "nothing concrete" when it comes to contract extension talks with David Pastrnak, who became eligible to sign a new contract on Wednesday. The winger has one year remaining on the six-year deal ($6.67 annual cap hit) in 2017.
"We didn't exchange any numbers, as I said the other day. Officially we can now," said Sweeney. "So, we'll go right to work in seeing where David's at and we'll take an aggressive mindset and hopefully find the common ground and see. There's no timeline on it."

Zacha Acquired for Haula

The Bruins' biggest move of the day came via trade as they acquired forward Pavel Zacha from New Jersey in exchange for Erik Haula. The 25-year-old Czechia native brings versatility (he can play all three forward positions) and offensive upside (32 goals over the past two seasons, including a career-high 17 in 50 games in 2020-21). Zacha is a restricted free agent and will require a new contract.
"We just felt that Pavel Zacha was a player that we had targeted in the middle of the ice s a multi-positional-type player," said Sweeney. "Younger [than Haula]. I feel there's growth and potential there moving forward. We hope to be able to find a deal with him being a part of the organization now and beyond; that remains to be seen how long that is. But, we'll attack that right away. Just felt like it was an opportunity for now and potentially moving forward. We identified a player that fit into our organization that we're excited about."
Sweeney said that where Zacha ends up in the lineup will depend on how things shake out with Bergeron and Krejci in the coming days.
"I suppose a little of it depends on Patrice and David both in that sense," said Sweeney. "He's more than comfortable playing all three positions and being productive. And again, we can always move other people around. I think he sees himself as a center and he's excited to be joining the Boston Bruins.
"We're excited to have him. Not really worried about the position, I think down the road he's definably a center. I think that helps us if we're able to find the term and agreement."
The expectation, Sweeney added, is that Zacha - the sixth overall pick from 2015 - will improve even more offensively and build on back-to-back seasons of 15-plus goals and 35-plus points, particularly with the chance to play high in the lineup with Brad Marchand expected to miss time early in the 2022-23 season.
"Obviously, that's what you hope for when you make a trade of this nature and a player that was drafted and has the skillset that he has," said Sweeney. "He's had opportunity in situations, playing with better players for periods of time - albeit in a younger environment.
"So, he'll have a chance to hopefully play in a top-nine scenario with us; and with March being out, a significant opportunity early on with power play and situational play that he can benefit from. But we do believe there's more potential there, and that's up to Pavel to take advantage of the opportunities he's presented with."
Sweeney also thanked Haula for his contributions to the Bruins last season, which included a strong stint over the second half as the club's No. 2 center between Taylor Hall and Pastrnak. The 31-year-old finished with 44 points (18 goals, 26 assists) in 78 games.
"I want to thank Erik," said Sweeney. "He was a big part of our team this year and did a tremendous job. Wishing him well in New Jersey."

Five Free Agents Added

Boston added Boston University product A.J. Greer on a two-year, one-way contract worth an NHL cap hit of $762,500. The 25-year-old forward spent the last two seasons in the Devils' organization, though most of his playing time came at the AHL level. Greer suited up for nine games (goal, assist) for New Jersey in 2021-22, while producing at nearly a point-per-game pace with the Utica Comets (52 points - 22 goals, 30 assists - in 53 games).
"In A.J.'s case, had a heck of a year offensively," said Sweeney. "I think he understands, in talking with him today, doing our background work on him - I think he understands himself a lot better as to what type of player he is and how to be successful. And hopefully that translates.
"I mean, from the skating and a speed standpoint, getting on pucks and being an aggressive mindset with his size, it's an attractive quality for us to add to our group.
"Monty was excited about going through the coaching process and how he envisioned the bottom part of our lineup looking like. I think it was an area that we tried to identify and A.J. was a guy that we feel had some upside there."
The Bruins also made four two-way signings, headlined by veteran netminder Keith Kinkaid. The 33-year-old Farmingville, New York native - inked to a one-year deal worth $750,000 - spent last the last two seasons with the Rangers, suiting up for just one game with the Blue Shirts in 2021-22 and nine in 2020-21.
Before that, Kinkaid started his career with an eight-year run in the Devils' organization, including 151 games with New Jersey over six seasons. The 6-foot-3, 186-pounder also spent one season with the Montreal in 2019-20.
Kinkaid had a career-year in 2017-18 with the Devils, posting a 26-10-3 record to go along with a .913 save percentage and 2.77 goals against average in 41 games. Overall, the Union College product is 69-58-21 with a .905 save percentage and 2.92 GAA in 167 games.
Minnesota native Vinni Lettieri was also signed to a one-year deal ($750,000). The 27-year-old forward had 10 points (five goals, five assists) in 31 games for Anaheim last season, his second with the Ducks. Lettieri has played 82 NHL games over four seasons with the Rangers and Ducks.
On the back end, Boston added Connor Carrick (one year, $750,00) and Daniel Renouf (two years, $762,500).
Carrick is a veteran of seven NHL seasons, though he spent all of last season with Charlotte in the American Hockey League as a member of the Seattle Kraken organization. The 28-year-old right shot has played in 241 games with 49 points (10 goals, 22 assists) for Washington, Toronto, Dallas, and New Jersey since entering the league in 2013-14. The Illinois native was a fifth-round pick of the Capitals in 2012.
Renouf, a 28-year-old left shot, has 23 games of NHL experience over parts of three seasons with Detroit and Colorado. The 6-foot-3, 200-pound Ontario native suited up for four games with the Red Wings last season.

A Flight of Departures

• Versatile forward Curtis Lazar, who spent the past season-plus with the Bruins, signed with the Vancouver Canucks for three years and an average annual value of $1 million. The British Columbia native set career highs with the Bruins last season, notching eight goals and 16 points in 70 games, while becoming a stalwart of Boston's fourth line."We wish Curtis well," said Sweeney. "He was a really great Bruin for us. Landed closer to home and it's probably what was best for he and his family, and you know, Vancouver is lucky to have him...we just felt comfortable, not necessarily giving up term, to see what these younger players may be able to offer to our group - nothing against Curtis…he was a really good player for us and we are hopeful that the other guys are ready to assume that role."
• Depth defenseman Josh Brown signed a two-year deal with Arizona after a six-game stint - plus one more in the playoffs - with the Black & Gold last season following his acquisition from Ottawa at the trade deadline.
• Forward Cameron Hughes, who spent the last five seasons in the Bruins organization after being drafted in the sixth round in 2015, landed in Seattle on a two-year, two-way deal. Hughes played two games in Boston, one each in 2019-20 and 2020-21. The Edmonton native and University of Wisconsin product led Providence in scoring last season with 45 points (14 goals, 31 assists) in 59 games.
• Veteran center Steven Fogarty inked a two-year, two-way contract with Minnesota. The 29-year-old played two games with Boston last season and 62 games for Providence, where he notched 42 points (12 goals, 30 assists), ranking second in team scoring behind Hughes.
• Jesper Froden, who made his NHL debut this season with the Bruins, inked a one-year, two-way deal ($750,000) with Seattle. The 27-year-old Sweden native notched one goal in seven games for Boston, while recording 34 points (16 goals, 18 assists) in 49 games with Providence.
• Goalie Troy Grosenick signed a one-year, one-way contract with Philadelphia after posting a 16-6-4 record with a .933 save percentage and 2.00 goals against average in 30 games for Providence in 2021-22.

Wait, There's More

Sweeney on if he is still not considering buying out any contracts: "It probably hasn't changed for where we stand. But people know me well enough, I don't rule things out because things can change as you go. But not at this point in time."
Sweeney on if he is looking to make any other signings up front: "No, we're not being aggressive. We've got a little bit of view to the back end, given a couple of our injuries, if something presents itself there. Some teams have asked about some of our players, so we're staying in talks in that regard, so we're not aggressively in the marketplace at this point."
Sweeney on adding more defensemen: "Possibly. You know, you get into the season you just never know. You start with two injuries, who knows, you knock on wood you're not going to have more, but it's challenging, you know."
Sweeney on Jakub Zboril's recovery from ACL surgery: "His recovery has gone very well, we are hopeful that he does assume the nature of his game was at and where it was trending. That's what we are excited about."