Bruins season preview: Lindholm, Zadorov expected to fill needed roles

The 2024-25 NHL season starts Oct. 4. With training camps opening soon, NHL.com is taking a look at the three keys, the inside scoop on roster questions, and the projected lineup for each of the 32 teams. Today, the Boston Bruins.

Coach: Jim Montgomery (third season)

Last season: 47-20-15; second place in Atlantic Division, lost in Eastern Conference Second Round

3 KEYS

1. The new Bergeron

The Bruins had considered bringing Elias Lindholm to Boston for two years before they finally got their prize on July 1, signing the 29-year-old to a seven-year contract. He’s looked at as a new version of franchise legend Patrice Bergeron, a defensively responsible top-line center who can play bumper on the power play and lengthen the team’s lineup. And there’s every reason to believe the signing will work out exactly as Bostons anticipates. But Lindholm is coming off a down 2023-24, when he dropped to 44 points (15 goals, 29 assists) in 75 games with the Calgary Flames and Vancouver Canucks from 64 points (22 goals, 42 assists) with the Flames in 2022-23 and 82 points (42 points, 40 assists) for Calgary in 2021-22. If Lindholm can bounce back, with some stability and certainty in his new home, it will go a long way for the Bruins.

2. Goalie transition

For the past two seasons, Jeremy Swayman and Linus Ullmark have formed one of the NHL’s best goalie tandems. But Ullmark is gone, traded to the Ottawa Senators on June 24, allowing Swayman to assume the mantle of No. 1 goalie (but losing his close friend in the process). Assuming Swayman and Boston work out their contract stalemate, the 25-year-old seems ready after a star turn in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, where he got 12 straight starts and put up a 2.15 goals-against average and .933 save percentage to help lead the Bruins to Game 6 of the second round against the eventual champion Florida Panthers. During the regular season, Swayman went 25-10-8 with a 2.53 GAA, .916 save percentage and three shutouts in 44 games (43 starts).

3. Marchand's health

Captain Brad Marchand made a surprise announcement at the team’s captain’s practice the first week of September: He had undergone three surgeries during the offseason, one on his elbow, for a torn tendon, one on his groin, to address a sports hernia, and one on his abdominal area, also for a sports hernia. Marchand said he was going to use the next two months to ramp up but that he would be surprised if he weren't ready for the start of the season. He didn’t seem overly worried, happy instead that he was able to address injuries that impacted him throughout last season and the playoffs. Marchand continues to be a crucial piece for Boston, especially with a question mark at the other wing on his line, so the speed with which he recuperates and gets ready for the season could be paramount.

ROSTER RUNDOWN

Making the cut

The Bruins have a major void, and they’re hoping an internal candidate can fill it. With Jake DeBrusk and Danton Heinen each leaving for the Vancouver Canucks, there is no obvious name to plus into the second-line right wing spot. Boston is hoping a prospect like Fabian Lysell or Georgii Merkulov will fit alongside a likely pairing of Marchand and Charlie Coyle. Merkulov went scoreless in a four-game cameo with the Bruins last season, but the 23-year-old had 65 points (30 goals, 35 assists) in 67 games with Providence of the American Hockey League. Lysell, 21, had 50 points (15 goals, 35 assists) in 56 games with Providence.

Most intriguing addition

Lindholm was an easy call as a pickup for Boston, which clearly could have used another center last season. More surprising was Nikita Zadorov being added to a team that excelled on the defensive end last season. The Bruins tied for fifth in the NHL with 2.70 goals against per game, but felt they could use some snarl on defense. They got that in Zadorov, a heavy hitter who stands 6-foot-6 and 248 pounds and packs a wallop. “I’ve really enjoyed watching from afar, the player that he is and the career that he’s had,” defenseman Charlie McAvoy said. “I’m thrilled at the opportunity to have him here and he makes our 'D' corps really, really whole. We’ve got a little bit of everything.” Zadorov had 20 points (six goals, 14 assists) in 75 games with the Flames and Canucks last season and added eight points (four goals, four assists) in 13 playoff games.

Biggest potential surprise

Goalie Joonas Korpisalo had a bit of a rough season with the Ottawa Senators last year, going 21-26-4 with a 3.27 GAA and .890 save percentage as the starter for a team that underperformed. And there’s no question that Korpisalo is likely to be a downgrade from Ullmark, for whom he was traded. But Korpisalo could be in line for a bounce-back season with Boston, which brings a strong defense to the table and much more support than he had in Ottawa. Plus, the Bruins aren’t relying on Korpisalo to be their starter -- that role goes to Swayman -- which should relieve some pressure.

Ready to contribute

Mason Lohrei had a bit of a coming-out party in the playoffs last season, wowing fans with his confidence and willingness to try anything. The 6-foot-5, 211-pound puck-moving defenseman comes in with the skills of a forward, having been one for most of his youth, and seems ready to make the jump to full-time NHL player. The 23-year-old played 41 games with Boston last season, with 13 points (four goals, nine assists), but it was his 11 games in the postseason, when he had four points (one goal, three assists) -- including a goal and two assists in six games against an aggressive Panthers forecheck -- that made folks take notice.

Fantasy sleeper

Korpisalo, G (average draft position: 182.7) – Though Swayman is expected to be the clear starter after Ullmark was traded, Korpisalo could emerge as one of the best backups in the NHL playing for the team with the most wins (112) and points (244) in the standings over the past two seasons combined. Korpisalo is coming off an NHL career high in wins (21) last season in a League career-high 55 games with the Senators. -- Pete Jensen

PROJECTED LINEUP

Pavel Zacha -- Elias Lindholm -- David Pastrnak

Brad Marchand -- Charlie Coyle -- Fabian Lysell

Trent Frederic -- Morgan Geekie -- Matthew Poitras

Max Jones -- Johnny Beecher -- Justin Brazeau

Nikita Zadorov -- Charlie McAvoy

Hampus Lindholm -- Brandon Carlo

Mason Lohrei -- Andrew Peeke

Jeremy Swayman

Joonas Korpisalo