Bruins announce eight roster transactions on busy Day 1 of free agency

Bruins announce eight roster transactions on busy Day 1 of free agency originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

Not many teams entered the first day of NHL free agency on Monday with more salary cap space than the Boston Bruins (around $21.67 million, per CapFriendly), and it didn’t take long for the Original Six franchise to announce a couple impactful additions once the market opened at noon ET.

The two most notable signings were Elias Lindholm (seven years, $54.25 million) and Nikita Zadorov (six years, $30 million).

Lindholm is a top-six center with an impressive two-way skill set and elite faceoff ability. Zadorov is a physically imposing defenseman who can provide a little scoring depth, defend against the opponents’ top forwards and kill penalties.

These two additions address two critical needs the Bruins had entering the offseason — a first- or second-line center and a left-shot defenseman.

The Bruins also signed Max Jones to a two-year contract with a $1 million cap hit. Jones tallied 15 points (five goals, 10 assists) in 52 games for the Anaheim Ducks last season. He was the No. 24 overall pick in the 2016 NHL Draft. Jones likely will compete for a bottom-six role in training camp.

Boston officially announced eight roster transactions Monday, all listed below. Some of these players likely won’t play in the NHL next season.

• Elias Lindholm, Forward (Seven years, $7.75 million NHL cap hit)

• Nikita Zadorov, Defenseman (Six years, $5 million NHL cap hit)

• Max Jones, Forward (Two years, $1 million NHL cap hit)

• Riley Tufte, Forward (One year, $775,000 NHL cap hit)

• Cole Koepke, Forward (One year, two-way contract, $775,000 NHL cap hit)

• Jordan Oesterle, Defenseman (Two-year, two-way contract, $775,000 NHL cap hit)

• Bill Sweezey, Defenseman (Two-year, two-way contract, $775,000 NHL cap hit)

• Jeffrey Viel, Forward (Two years, $775,000 NHL cap hit; The deal is a two-way contract for the 2024-25 season and a one-way contract for the 2025-26 season)