On Monday, one NHL general manager did not believe the Boston Bruins could acquire a 2024 first-round pick for Linus Ullmark. That projection was wrong.
The Bruins are back in first-round business after dealing Ullmark to the Ottawa Senators. They are desperate to make the 25th selection on Friday in Las Vegas. They were idle in the opening round the last two years, courtesy of the 2022 Hampus Lindholm trade and the 2023 transaction that netted Dmitry Orlov and Garnet Hathaway.
The last time they picked 25th was in 2014. It was an organization-changing selection. Ten years later, David Pastrnak is on pace to become one of the finest goal scorers of his generation.
The Bruins are short on high-end prospects. None of their AHL players is a lock to make the 2024-25 roster.
The Bruins, however, had to pay a premium on top of Ullmark to get a first-round pick in the 2024 NHL Draft.
The Bruins are now responsible for the four remaining seasons of Joonas Korpisalo’s five-year, $20 million contract, albeit at a 25 percent discount. Even at $3 million annually, it is a steep sum for a 30-year-old coming off an .890 save percentage with the Ottawa Senators in 2023-24.
Korpisalo saved minus-16.1 goals above expectation, per MoneyPuck. Of the 98 goalies with at least one NHL appearance last season, only Arvid Soderblom (minus-18.2) was worse. Ullmark was at 14.8, seventh-best in the NHL.
The Bruins determined, however, that the first-rounder they once owned — they traded it in 2023 for Tyler Bertuzzi from the Detroit Red Wings, who then flipped it for Alex DeBrincat — was worth swallowing Korpisalo’s poison pill.
It may be that the Bruins project a rebound in Joonas Korpisalo. (Joel Auerbach / Getty Images)
Whether it is long-term discomfort is unknown.
It may be that the Bruins project a rebound in Korpisalo, enough to make him Jeremy Swayman’s backup in 2024-25. That may be so.
Ottawa was the Eastern Conference’s third-worst team last season, and not just because Korpisalo struggled to stop pucks. The Bruins’ primary commitment under coach Jim Montgomery is relentless and structured defending.
Also, goalie coach Bob Essensa reworked Ullmark’s game to the point where the ex-Buffalo Sabre won the Vezina Trophy in 2022-23. Perhaps Essensa could perform a similar degree of magic with Korpisalo where he is not a $3 million millstone.
If the Bruins do not believe Korpisalo is worth the investment, they could execute a buyout. Because of the salary retention, the Bruins would be responsible for $8 million of Korpisalo’s $10,666,667 buyout, spread out over eight years. This would allow Brandon Bussi to be Swayman’s No. 2 in 2024-25. Bussi signed a one-year, two-way, $775,000 contract on Monday.
“Not sure,” one GM, granted anonymity to discuss other players, wrote in a text regarding a buyout of Korpisalo. “If not, lose Ullmark and don’t save a lot of money to get a late first.”
Either way, the fact that the Bruins had to take on Korpisalo’s contract is further confirmation of Ullmark’s market value: not even close to his projected performance in Ottawa. Even if the Senators are not as strong as the Bruins, Ullmark will be motivated to be an ace for his new club in a contract year.
The Bruins could have done better had the Senators negotiated a pre-trade extension with Ullmark. Whether the Bruins granted Ullmark and agent Joakim Persson to talk contract with the Senators is unknown. The return would have been higher, perhaps in the Shane Pinto tier, had an agreement in principle been in place.
But this is the reality of the goalie market. To get Jacob Markstrom’s two remaining years at a 31.25 percent discount, the New Jersey Devils only had to give up a 2025 first-rounder and depth defenseman Kevin Bahl. The Markstrom trade helped to formulate Ullmark’s return. The Senators were not willing to part with a 2024 first-rounder for one season of Ullmark without shifting an unwieldy asset onto the Bruins’ books. Korpisalo is no longer Ottawa’s problem.
Mark Kastelic, the third piece of Ottawa’s package, is not a throwaway because of his size. The 6-foot-4, 226-pounder plays an abrasive style that should place him on the fourth line. He scored five goals and five assists in 63 games while averaging 7:43 of ice time per appearance. The 25-year-old is signed for 2024-25 at $835,000.
But the trade, for now, leaves the Bruins with only an additional $1.165 million in cap space. Part of that will go toward Swayman’s raise. The Bruins also need a top-two center, a scoring wing and a left-shot defenseman.
Sweeney’s offseason work is only beginning.
(Photo: Rich Gagnon / Getty Images)
