{"id":1418,"date":"2026-05-28T17:35:05","date_gmt":"2026-05-28T17:35:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=1418"},"modified":"2026-05-28T17:35:05","modified_gmt":"2026-05-28T17:35:05","slug":"is-simon-nemec-a-player-the-bruins-should-target-this-offseason","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=1418","title":{"rendered":"Is Simon Nemec a player the Bruins should target this offseason?"},"content":{"rendered":"<article>\n<div>\n<p><span>A top-four, right-shot defenseman stands near the top of Don Sweeney\u2019s offseason to-do list.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=1416\">Trump administration sues Mass. over denial of confidential plates for ICE vehicles<\/a><\/p>\n<p><span>How the\u00a0Bruins\u00a0actually go out and acquire said asset is a task easier said than done.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Signing a veteran like Rasmus Andersson or Darren Raddysh would seemingly shore up a D corps prone to coughing up Grade-A chances the last couple of seasons \u2014 while also injecting a bit more scoring punch and puck-moving capabilities into that segment of the roster.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p><span>But a Bruins team already\u00a0hindered by one increasingly onerous contract in Elias Lindholm\u2019s\u00a0would invite a lot more risk doling out a seven-year deal to a 30-year-old in Raddysh or a 29-year-old Andersson \u2014 especially with their expected annual cap hits expected to hover between $7.5 \u2013 9.5 million per year.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>As such, a trade might be the most logical route for Boston \u2014 especially if the Bruins want to take a swing on a younger blueliner with room to grow.<\/span><\/p>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div><span>Get Starting Point<\/span><\/div>\n<div><span>A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday.<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div><label>Enter Email<\/label><\/p>\n<div><button>Sign Up<\/button><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><span>While 22-year-old Ducks blueliner\u00a0Olen Zellweger stands as an intriguing target\u00a0given his skating ability and untapped potential, he\u2019s also a left-shot option \u2014 better suited to more of a complementary role alongside a player like Charlie McAvoy.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>But on the right side, a player like Devils blueliner Simon Nemec could be cut from a similar cloth \u2013 giving Boston a high-upside talent who could develop into a lineup stalwart if given an extended runway to develop.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The second-overall pick in the 2022 NHL Draft, Nemec was selected by New Jersey as a potential top-pairing fixture whose offensive talents would complement a fast-paced, uber-skilled roster anchored by Jack Hughes.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>That hasn\u2019t played out for both Nemec and the Devils to this point, with the Slovakian-born defenseman appearing in 155 games over the past three seasons in the NHL.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Despite setting a new career-high with 11 goals and 26 points over 68 games in 2025-26, Nemec struggled to carve out a regular role on Sheldon Keefe\u2019s depth chart this past season, while his status as a pending restricted free agent further complicates matters as the Devils stare at an eventful offseason.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Nemec, who also spent parts of two seasons with New Jersey\u2019s AHL affiliate in Utica, New York, could be looking for a change of scenery \u2014 especially with a team that could carve out more minutes for him moving forward.\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=1415\">\u2018Keep our little kids safe.\u2019 Healey issues guidance for schools, churches, and other locations in dealing with ICE<\/a><\/p>\n<p><span>There have been conflicting reports over Nemec\u2019s future with the Devils and whether or not the 22-year-old skater requested a trade earlier this offseason, with\u00a0Slovakian NHL writer Tomas Prokop\u00a0shutting down a story that Nemec asked out of New Jersey.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>It remains to be seen if new Devils GM Sunny Mehta will actually entertain dealing away Nemec, or opt to sign him to a bridge deal and try to extract more playmaking talent out of a promising \u2014 albeit unproven \u2014 defenseman moving forward.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>But if Mehta and the Devils are taking offers, the Bruins should join what should be a sizable list of suitors for the young blueliner.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Even though Nemec isn\u2019t exactly an imposing figure at 6-foot-1 and 190 pounds, he\u2019d fill a need on Boston\u2019s roster when it comes to offensive skill on defense.<\/span><\/p>\n<div>\n<div>\n<blockquote>\n<p>SIMON NEMEC \ud83d\ude31<\/p>\n<p>The @NJDevils have tied it with 4.7 seconds left in the third! pic.twitter.com\/BSIgrG61BK<\/p>\n<p>\u2014 NHL (@NHL) November 11, 2025<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><span>He\u2019s not exactly a burner in terms of straight-line speed,\u00a0with NHL Edge tracking data\u00a0tabbing him with just 18 instances of skating bursts between 20-22 miles per hour this past year (below the 50th percentile in the league).<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>But Nemec has a heavy shot that can either beat goalies clean or can generate havoc via tips, rebounds, and second-chance bids as he sails into traffic \u2014 while his creativity with the puck on his stick could make him a potential power-play fixture if given more of an opportunity moving forward.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Even if the Bruins are inviting plenty of risk if they pivot and choose to sign a pricey free agent like Raddysh or Andersson, Nemec is also a significant gamble.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u200bBoston is banking more on upside than proven results for a player like Nemec, which could lead to disaster if the Bruins pay a steep price for a blueliner who \u2014 despite his lofty draft pedigree \u2014 might be more of a flawed, third-pairing regular than a budding franchise defenseman.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u200bBut if the Bruins are looking to get creative this offseason in hopes of identifying franchise fixtures to build around this core, distressed assets like Nemec and Zellweger stand as the type of targets that Boston should be setting its sights on if they want to make a bold move or two.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=1413\">These are some of the Trump Justice Department\u2019s targets<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Nemec was the second overall pick in the 2022 NHL Draft.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1417,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1418","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sport"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Is Simon Nemec a player the Bruins should target this offseason? - Boston Relocation Insider<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=1418\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Is Simon Nemec a player the Bruins should target this offseason? - 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