The Boston Bruins opened free agency on Monday with a pair of splashes, reportedly signing right-shot center Elias Lindholm and left-shot defenseman Nikita Zadorov.
TSN’s Darren Dreger was the first to report the signings, both of which had been rumored to be likely in recent days.
The Athletic’s Chris Johnston reported that Lindholm’s deal is for seven years with an average annual value of $7.75 million, and that Zadorov’s is for six years with an AAV of $5 million.
The team later confirmed both signings.
A first-line center was clearly the biggest need on the Bruins’ roster, and they will be hoping that Lindholm can be the solution.
The 29-year-old Lindholm has produced at those levels in the past, most notably with a 42-goal, 82-point season in 2021-22. He is coming off a down year, however, posting 44 points (15g, 29a) in a season split between the Calgary Flames and Vancouver Canucks. He did put together a good postseason for Vancouver with 10 points (5g, 5a) in 13 games, helping to buoy his value ahead of free agency.
Lindholm (who is not related to Bruins defenseman Hampus Lindholm) is a good two-way player who plays in all situations, and he will be counted on to do exactly that for the Bruins, likely slotting in on the top line with David Pastrnak while also playing significant power-play and penalty-kill minutes. Lindholm is excellent on faceoffs, finishing over 55% at the dot each of the last two seasons.
Zadorov, meanwhile, adds size (6-foot-6, 248 pounds) and physicality to the Bruins’ defense and has the ability to move up and down the lineup a bit. The 29-year-old is also a good skater who can move the puck, but he doesn’t bring a ton offensively, with point totals of 22, 21 and 20 the last three seasons. The biggest knocks on his game are that he can be prone to some poor decision-making and that he takes too many penalties (125 penalty minutes last season).
This will be the third different team that Lindholm and Zadorov have been on together, as they were also teammates in Calgary and Vancouver.
With a Jeremy Swayman extension still to come, the Bruins have a little over $11 million in cap space remaining after the Lindholm and Zadorov signings. That could still be enough to potentially add a lower-tier top-nine winger in free agency.