David Pastrnak was among those rumored to be on the move ahead of last season’s NHL trade deadline, but the Boston Bruins ultimately kept the forward, with the expectation that the front office and the player will be able to strike an extension deal in the offseason.
It appears that that is where David Pastrnak and the Bruins are heading, with Darren Dreger of TSN reporting that contract talks between the two sides are moving along and gaining even more momentum (h/t Scott McLaughlin of WEEI):
“Both sides are assessing the market right now,” Dreger said. “I can tell you that contract discussions have heated up since camp has opened. Relatively quiet over the course of the summer. Not unusual. There were some preliminary discussions at the draft. Pastrnak understands and he’s clearly hopeful that something will get done sooner than later, but the Bruins continue to do their due diligence.”
David Pastrnak still has a year remaining on his current contract with the Bruins that he signed back in 2017, one that is worth $40 million total and would earn him $4.4 million in the 2022-23 NHL campaign. The 26-year-old Czech skater is coming off a strong 2021-22 season in which he found the back of the net 40 times to go with 37 assists in 72 games. He scored three goals and had three assists in the playoffs where the Bruins were eliminated in the first round by the Carolina Hurricanes.
The Bruins might have to make a couple of front office maneuvers in the event they decide to finally offer David Pastrnak a massive extension contract. At the moment, the Bruins are projected to go over the cap by around $2.2 million, per CapFriendly.
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