Boston Bruins general manager Don Sweeney will have a busy offseason this summer. After surprisingly making the playoffs this past season, the Bruins are expected to strengthen their squad in the coming months. Sweeney will look to add to his roster in free agency and via trades. One particular deal, however, would offload a significant contract to free up extra funds.
The Athletic’s Fluto Shinzawa is predicting that Boston will look to trade goalie Joonas Korpisalo this summer. According to the Bruins beat writer, Sweeney should expect to receive a late draft pick in return for the veteran netminder. Korpisalo previously landed with the Bruins in the 2024 deal that sent Linus Ullmark to the Ottawa Senators.
The Fin has been used as the team’s backup to star goalie Jeremy Swayman during his two campaigns in Beantown. This past season, Korpisalo posted a 3.15 GAA and .894 save percentage. The relatively average statistics are not necessarily a major issue. Nevertheless, the backup is in the middle of his five-year, $20 million contract. Potentially trading away Korpisalo would free up $4 million per season over the next two years.
According to Puckpedia.com, the Bruins currently have a projected cap space of just over $15 million. While not exactly a huge sum, Boston only has one open spot on the roster at the moment. Moving Korpisalo would give Sweeney more space to target a right-handed defenseman, his biggest need at the moment.
The Boston Bruins Already Have Their Joonas Korpisalo Replacement
GettyJoonas Korpisalo has an .894 SV% in two seasons with the Boston Bruins.
Not only can the Boston Bruins create more cap space by trading Korpisalo, but they seemingly already have his replacement. 27-year-old Michael DiPietro only managed to feature in one NHL game with the club during the 2025-26 season. He, however, did impress with the Providence Bruins. In fact, DiPietro recorded a 1.91 GAA and .930 in 45 games with the AHL affiliate.
Following his lone appearance with Boston, which was only a six-minute relief cameo, Bruins head coach Marco Sturm raved about DiPietro. “Good for Mikey. He’s been rock solid all year,” claimed Sturm, as reported by Mass Live. “In that little stretch, he made some key saves and felt very good about it.”
As Joe Haggerty from Boston Sports Journal has recently pointed out, the Bruins do not want to risk losing DiPietro as they did with Brandon Bussi. Much like DiPietro, Bussi also starred in the AHL before getting a real chance in Boston. The Bruins ultimately let go of Bussi, and he eventually landed with the Carolina Hurricanes. Bussi recently helped Carolina win the Stanley Cup in heroic fashion.
Boston Also Linked With Offloading Other Players
The Boston Bruins should not have much trouble offloading Korpisalo in the coming months. While his salary is not necessarily ideal, several NHL teams are looking for help between the pipes this summer. The veteran will likely still be viewed as a competent backup by other clubs, especially if he is dealt for a late draft pick.
Korpisalo is not expected to be the only outgoing move by Sweeney and the Bruins. Casey Mittelstadt, Henri Jokiharju, and Mason Lohrei have also been named as potential castaways by Shinzawa.
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