- Pavel Zacha is heading into the last year of his deal with no extension signed
- Don Sweeney said in June he wanted to get out in front of it
- Read below for what a 30-goal season could cost Boston
Don Sweeney said in June that he wanted to get ahead of Pavel Zacha’s next contract. Two months later, the Bruins still have not signed him.
Boston’s general manager was asked before the draft whether an extension for Zacha was a priority.
“Yeah, I’d prefer to be proactive in that. My goal is to extend [him]. He had a really good year. He’s an important player for us.”
Zacha became eligible to sign on July 1. Nothing has come out since, and training camps open next month.
The 29-year-old center is entering the final season of the four-year, $19 million deal he signed in January 2023. It carries a $4.75 million cap hit and walks him to unrestricted free agency in July 2027.
From Boston’s side, he picked an expensive time to have the best year of his career. Zacha scored 30 goals and put up 65 points in 78 games last season, both career highs by a wide margin. His old best in goals was 21.
Watch all 30 of them:
There is a 22.9 sitting in the middle of all this. That was Zacha’s shooting percentage last season, against a career mark of 13.1 across 706 games. Pay him as a 30-goal center and he can come back a 20-goal center.
Letting him walk is no easier. Elias Lindholm’s back has bothered him through two years of a seven-year, $54.25 million contract, and the Bruins never did replace Patrice Bergeron down the middle. Fraser Minten, James Hagens and Matt Poitras are all on the way, but none of them is ready for the top job in October.
Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic reported in June that Boston was listening to calls on Zacha while trying to extend him, and that Zacha handed in his eight-team no-trade list on April 1.
On the final day of the season, Zacha said he hopes to stay in Boston and credited the Bruins with turning his career around. Here is that availability:
AFP Analytics projects five years at $7.32 million. On 32 Thoughts, Kyle Bukauskas floated eight figures if Zacha repeats the 30-goal year. Either number lands on a roster that already owes Charlie McAvoy a raise, and Boston has its own math to sort out there.
Sweeney has a month to decide whether Zacha is the center he builds around or the asset he moves. Every week he waits, the price on Zacha climbs.
