Bruins Close To Re-Signing Goalie Prospect

Goalies are in high demand and there aren't too many upgrades available for teams this offseason. The Boston Bruins have Jeremy Swayman locked in long-term, but they still do need to think about upgrades themselves because the backup position is also important.

There is a chance that Joonas Korpisalo is sent elsewhere this offseason, so who plays behind Swayman? The answer to that may be Michael DiPietro, who has worked his way back to being a premier AHL starter for the Providence Bruins. Though he is 26 years old, he has played just three NHL games in his playing career and should still arguably be considered a prospect for maybe the last time.

According to Rick Dhaliwal, the Bruins are closing in on a deal with DiPietro who would have become a UFA on July 1 and would get a lot of interest from teams.

DiPietro is still young for a goalie and could earn a lot more playing time in the NHL next season. He posted a 2.05 GAA and .927 SV% this season in 39 games and 2.51 GAA and .918 SV% the season prior for Providence as well. That is more than a large enough sample size for him to start to see NHL action, especially around the time when goalies usually hit their stride. He could be a very affordable backup option for the Bruins who are looking to give their forward group a major boost with signings/trades.

The Bruins will likely see Brandon Bussi walk in free agency after the 27-year-old put together a solid three-plus season in Providence, but never got into an NHL game. Boston signed 24-year-old Czechia goalie Simon Zajicek for one year, so DiPietro and Zajicek will likely run the AHL to start unless Korpisalo is moved once DiPietro’s deal is finalized.