Some organizational depth in Beantown has been ensured for one more season.
On Monday, the Boston Bruins signed goaltender Brandon Bussi to a one-year, two-way contract. The deal carries a $775,000 cap hit, $275,000 guaranteed, for the 2024-25 season.
Since Bussi joined the organization in March 2022, he has been under one-year deals.
The 6-foot-5 netminder is coming off his second full season with the organization. He has spent the majority of his time with the Bruins’ American Hockey League affiliate, the Providence Bruins. Bussi also made four appearances with the Maine Mariners, Boston’s ECHL affiliate.
Bussi has quietly become a viable netminding prospect in the Bruins system since signing an AHL contract following three years at Western Michigan University. The former Muskegon Lumberjack had a great 2023-24 campaign, going 23-10-5 in 41 appearances, registering a 2.67 goals-against average and a .913 save percentage with one shutout. He also posted a 2.14 GAA and .922 SV% in four playoff games, as Providence was eliminated in the Atlantic Divison Semifinals by the Hartford Wolfpack.
Bussi has been recalled a couple of times by the big club, but has yet to make an appearance during an NHL regular season game.
In 78 career AHL games, the Sound Beach, N.Y. native has a record of 48-17-9, with a 2.55 GAA, a .918 SV% and three shutouts. He earned his first AHL All-Star Classic appearance in 2023, and was named to the league’s all-rookie team in 2022-23.
The 25-year-old made a name for himself in Kalamazoo with the Western Michigan Broncos, helping the team advance to the NCAA Tournament in 2021-22, playing in every game for the Broncos.
With the transaction, the Bruins have 32 standard player contracts signed through next season. According to CapFriendly, Boston has over $20 million in projected cap space for the 2024-25 season.
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