Boston Bruins general manager Don Sweeney shed light on many of the team’s plans entering the 2026-27 season. The topic of a contract extension with top-two center Pavel Zacha remained one of the most pressing – with the 29 year old one of only two forwards in Boston’s top-six without a deal beyond this season.
Sweeney told Joe Haggerty of Boston Sports Journal that the Bruins remain in communication with Zacha’s representation and hope a deal can come together soon. He added that Zacha is an important part of the club’s commitment to winning, underlining their desire to have a versatile veteran at the top of the lineup.
Zacha finished the 2025-26 season ranked fourth on the offense in average ice time. He scored a career-high 30 goals and 65 points in 78 games – marking the third time that he’s reached a new high in scoring through four years in Boston.
That has been helped along by Zacha’s feature role on Boston’s top power-play unit, which accounted for 10 goals and 21 points last season. Zacha’s 53 percent faceoff percentage has also chipped in to his success outside of the offensive end.
The Bruins don’t have a wealth of center depth. Outside of Elias Lindholm, Zacha represents the Bruins’ best bet at a top-center option – emphasized by his ability to provide year-over-year consistency.
He is on the other side of his prime years, set to turn 30 at the end of the 2026-27 season. The last player to sign at a similar age was Pittsburgh Penguins center Thomas Novak, who inked a three-year, $13.95MM ($4.65MM AAV) deal with the club on July 31st.
That could be Zacha’s best frame of reference in negotiations, though Novak’s career-high in scoring sits 23 points under Zacha’s. With the bar that Novak sets, Zacha could begin talks closer to a $7MM ask.
Signing Zacha to a multi-year extension will be an integral part of Boston’s long-term planning. The Bruins signed Fraser Minten to a seven-year, $50.4MM ($7.2MM AAV) contract earlier this summer.
He will be the most likely to graduate into Zacha’s second-line role one day, while rookie James Hagens could find a way to push above both on the lineup over the final two years of his entry-level contract. Zacha’s veteran reliability will provide both youngsters with a chance to ease into major lineup roles, as he likely enters the gradual decline of his career.
With his presence alongside Lindholm and Casey Mittelstadt, locking down Zacha would provide Boston with the depth needed to hold down their roster through the rest of the 2020s.