Bruins reportedly signing Marat Khusnutdinov to a 3-year contract extension

October 21, 2026 | 1:57 PM

The Bruins are locking up another young player on their roster for the long haul.

Boston announced on Wednesday afternoon that it signed forward Marat Khusnutdinov to a three-year contract extension through the 2029-30 season with an annual cap hit of $3.95 million.

ESPN’s Kevin Weekes and Emily Kaplan were the first to report on the news of Khusnutdinov’s new deal.

The 24-year-old forward was set to become a restricted free agent at the end of the 2026-27 season.

Khusnutdinov’s new deal stands as another productive move for a Bruins team reaping the benefits of embracing a youth movement this year — as he is among several youngsters who have helped Boston jump to a 7-2-1 record this season.

Khusnutdinov — originally acquired by Boston in March 2025 as part of a trade with the Wild involving Justin Brazeau — has seen his stock soar since first arriving in Boston as an unproven former second-round pick with underwhelming NHL production.

But after scoring just three goals and 11 points in 73 career games with Minnesota, Khusnutdinov has emerged as a versatile weapon in Marco Sturm’s forward corps, scoring 20 goals and 43 points in 105 games with Boston.​

So far this season, Khusnutdinov has scored two goals and five points in 10 games while averaging 13:41 of ice time per contest.

Initially projected as more of a fourth-line player, Khusnutdinov’s speed and puck skills have helped him move up the depth chart — often finding plenty of success on a line centered by Fraser Minten.

Since the start of the 2025-26 season, the Bruins have outscored opponents, 24-12, during the 417 minutes of 5-on-5 ice time Khusnutdinov and Minten logged together.

Fittingly, Bruins general manager Don Sweeney signaled both Minten and Khusnutdinov as potential extension candidates in July — with both forwards as coveted building blocks for Boston’s extended roster rebuild.

Minten signed a seven-year, $50.4 million contract extension with Boston in September — a long-term deal that now looks like a potential steal for the Bruins, given Minten’s immediate contributions and a rising salary cap.

The Bruins are holding out hope that Minten’s regular linemate in Khusnutdinov will follow a similar path as a long-term investment that immediately pays dividends for Boston.

Conor Ryan is a staff writer covering the Bruins, Celtics, Patriots, and Red Sox for Boston.com, a role he has held since 2023.

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