SAD MOMENT: Boston Bruins top star bids farewell to club in tears.

Report: Bruins Cutting Ties With Oskar Steen

It was inevitable that the Boston Bruins were going to move on with more than a few of their free agents this offseason, and have now started the process by cutting ties with forward Oskar Steen.

Per Ty Anderson of 98.5 The Sports Hub, the Bruins informed Steen they won’t be retaining him and that he is free to negotiate with other teams, according to Steen’s agent, Joakim Persson, who told Swedish news outlet Värmlands Folkblad.

Steen played in a career-high 34 games for the Bruins in 2023-24 but accounted for only a single point. After being placed on waivers in February, Steen went unclaimed and was demoted to AHL Providence, where he finished the rest of the year.

Steen, 26, is considered a Group 6 UFA, having played in only 60 NHL games across four seasons.

Drafted in the sixth round of the 2016 NHL Entry Draft, Steen debuted for the Bruins in 2021. He was used sparingly as a depth forward throughout his time in Boston, totaling eight points with four goals.

Given his production and the lack of interest he received while on the waiver wire, it’s doubtful Steen will have many NHL clubs courting him as a free agent. Rather, signing an AHL contract or one overseas seems much more realistic for the forward.

Like Steen, defense prospect Reilly Walsh and goalie prospect Kyle Keiser are also Group 6 UFAs for the Bruins.

According to Puckpedia, the Bruins are projected to have $23.86 million in cap space entering the offseason, with NHL free agency beginning on July 1.

The Bruins have been trying to strike a deal involving Ullmark for months. But with the 2024 NHL Entry Draft in Las Vegas just a little more than two weeks away, time is running out for Bruins general manager Don Sweeney to move the former Vezina Trophy winner.

Currently, the Bruins own just three picks in the upcoming draft, none of which are in the first three rounds. With one year left on his current contract, trading away Ullmark before the draft is the best way for the Bruins to restock on picks that they desperately need.

The countdown to the draft, coupled with Markstrom being off the board, should only speed up conversations surrounding Ullmark. That said, it’ll be interesting to see what Boston gets back in a potential Ullmark trade now that the price for a goalie is established.

However, finding another team willing to pay the steep price the Bruins are asking will be much harder than before, with the Devils and Kings, two of the teams with perhaps the biggest need in goal this summer, no longer interested.