# 2005–06 Boston Bruins season

The 2005–06 Boston Bruins season was their 82nd season of operation. The Bruins slipped to 13th in the Eastern Conference and did not qualify for the playoffs for the first time since 2001.

## Off-season

Key dates prior to the start of the season:
* The 2005 NHL entry draft took place in Ottawa, Ontario, on July 30, 2005.
* The free agency period began on August 1.

## Regular season

After Joe Thornton voiced his unhappiness with his contract in Boston in 2005, many teams reportedly sent offers to the Bruins. However, Thornton re-signed with the team on August 11, 2005, on a three-year contract worth US$20 million. On November 30, 2005, he was traded to the San Jose Sharks in a blockbuster four-player deal which sent forwards Marco Sturm and Wayne Primeau and defenseman Brad Stuart to Boston. Thornton was the team's leading scorer at the time by a substantial margin and many felt Bruins general manager Mike O'Connell had traded away one of the few players who was truly showing an exemplary effort. On January 10, 2006, Thornton returned to Boston as a member of the Sharks, but was ejected for checking Bruins' defenseman Hal Gill from behind at 5:13 of the first period. Thornton received a five-minute major and a game misconduct. The misconduct was later rescinded by the NHL.
General manager Mike O'Connell was fired on March 25 and replaced on an interim basis by assistant general manager Jeff Gorton.
The Bruins ended up finishing with the third-worst record in the Eastern Conference, but the story of the season for the team was the emergence of goaltender Tim Thomas. Thomas had been in the Bruins organization before and had become a star in Europe before deciding to give the NHL one last try. Injuries to incumbent starter Andrew Raycroft and backup Hannu Toivonen pushed Thomas into the starting role, one that he did not relinquish until after the 2011–12 season.

### Final standings

Northeast Division :
| No. | CR | | GP | W | L | OTL | GF | GA | Pts |
| 1 | 1 | Ottawa Senators | 82 | 52 | 21 | 9 | 314 | 211 | 113 |
| 2 | 4 | Buffalo Sabres | 82 | 52 | 24 | 6 | 281 | 239 | 110 |
| 3 | 7 | Montreal Canadiens | 82 | 42 | 31 | 9 | 243 | 247 | 93 |
| 4 | 9 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 82 | 41 | 33 | 8 | 257 | 270 | 90 |
| 5 | 13 | Boston Bruins | 82 | 29 | 37 | 16 | 230 | 266 | 74 |
Note: CR = Conference rank; GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; OTL = Overtime/Shootout loss; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; Pts = Points Bolded teams qualified for the playoffs.
Eastern Conference :
| R | | Div | GP | W | L | OTL | GF | GA | Pts |
| 1 | Z- Ottawa Senators | NE | 82 | 52 | 21 | 9 | 314 | 211 | 113 |
| 2 | Y- Carolina Hurricanes | SE | 82 | 52 | 22 | 8 | 294 | 260 | 112 |
| 3 | Y- New Jersey Devils | AT | 82 | 46 | 27 | 9 | 242 | 229 | 101 |
| 4 | X- Buffalo Sabres | NE | 82 | 52 | 24 | 6 | 242 | 239 | 110 |
| 5 | X- Philadelphia Flyers | AT | 82 | 45 | 26 | 11 | 267 | 259 | 101 |
| 6 | X- New York Rangers | AT | 82 | 44 | 26 | 12 | 257 | 215 | 100 |
| 7 | X- Montreal Canadiens | NE | 82 | 42 | 31 | 9 | 243 | 247 | 93 |
| 8 | X- Tampa Bay Lightning | SE | 82 | 43 | 33 | 6 | 252 | 260 | 92 |
| 8.5 ||||||||||
| 9 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NE | 82 | 41 | 33 | 8 | 257 | 270 | 90 |
| 10 | Atlanta Thrashers | SE | 82 | 41 | 33 | 8 | 281 | 275 | 90 |
| 11 | Florida Panthers | SE | 82 | 37 | 34 | 11 | 240 | 257 | 85 |
| 12 | New York Islanders | AT | 82 | 36 | 40 | 6 | 230 | 278 | 78 |
| 13 | Boston Bruins | NE | 82 | 29 | 37 | 16 | 230 | 266 | 74 |
| 14 | Washington Capitals | SE | 82 | 29 | 41 | 12 | 237 | 306 | 70 |
| 15 | Pittsburgh Penguins | AT | 82 | 22 | 46 | 14 | 244 | 316 | 58 |
Divisions: AT – Atlantic, NE – Northeast, SE – Southeast
Z – Clinched Conference; Y – Clinched Division; X – Clinched Playoff spot

## Schedule and results

2005–06 regular season :
October: 5–5–3 (home: 2–2–1; road: 3–3–2)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
1LOctober 5, 20051–2Montreal Canadiens (2005–06)0–1–0Recap
2LOctober 7, 20051–4@ Buffalo Sabres (2005–06)0–2–0Recap
3WOctober 8, 20057–6 OT@ Pittsburgh Penguins (2005–06)1–2–0Recap
4WOctober 10, 20054–2@ Tampa Bay Lightning (2005–06)2–2–0Recap
5WOctober 13, 20055–2@ Florida Panthers (2005–06)3–2–0Recap
6LOctober 15, 20051–5@ Ottawa Senators (2005–06)3–3–0Recap
7LOctober 18, 20053–4@ Montreal Canadiens (2005–06)3–4–0Recap
8LOctober 20, 20053–4Buffalo Sabres (2005–06)3–5–0Recap
9WOctober 22, 20056–3Pittsburgh Penguins (2005–06)4–5–0Recap
10LOctober 24, 20054–5 SO@ Toronto Maple Leafs (2005–06)4–5–1Recap
11LOctober 26, 20053–4 OT@ Carolina Hurricanes (2005–06)4–5–2Recap
12WOctober 27, 20052–1Toronto Maple Leafs (2005–06)5–5–2Recap
13LOctober 29, 20054–5 SONew Jersey Devils (2005–06)5–5–3Recap :
November: 3–8–2 (home: 2–4–0; road: 1–4–2)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
14LNovember 1, 20053–4 OT@ New York Islanders (2005–06)5–5–4Recap
15WNovember 3, 20054–1Florida Panthers (2005–06)6–5–4Recap
16WNovember 5, 20056–3Pittsburgh Penguins (2005–06)7–5–4Recap
17LNovember 8, 20053–4 OT@ Philadelphia Flyers (2005–06)7–5–5Recap
18LNovember 10, 20052–5Ottawa Senators (2005–06)7–6–5Recap
19LNovember 12, 20052–5@ New York Islanders (2005–06)7–7–5Recap
20LNovember 17, 20051–4Toronto Maple Leafs (2005–06)7–8–5Recap
21LNovember 19, 20052–3Buffalo Sabres (2005–06)7–9–5Recap
22LNovember 20, 20052–3@ New York Rangers (2005–06)7–10–5Recap
23WNovember 23, 20055–1@ Toronto Maple Leafs (2005–06)8–10–5Recap
24LNovember 25, 20053–5Philadelphia Flyers (2005–06)8–11–5Recap
25LNovember 26, 20052–4@ Ottawa Senators (2005–06)8–12–5Recap
26LNovember 29, 20052–3@ New Jersey Devils (2005–06)8–13–5Recap :
December: 6–5–1 (home: 2–0–1; road: 4–5–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
27WDecember 1, 20053–0Ottawa Senators (2005–06)9–13–5Recap
28WDecember 3, 20055–4 OT@ Edmonton Oilers (2005–06)10–13–5Recap
29LDecember 4, 20052–5@ Vancouver Canucks (2005–06)10–14–5Recap
30LDecember 7, 20051–4@ Colorado Avalanche (2005–06)10–15–5Recap
31LDecember 11, 20051–2 OTPhoenix Coyotes (2005–06)10–15–6Recap
32WDecember 15, 20053–2@ Minnesota Wild (2005–06)11–15–6Recap
33LDecember 17, 20050–3@ Calgary Flames (2005–06)11–16–6Recap
34WDecember 22, 20054–1Toronto Maple Leafs (2005–06)12–16–6Recap
35LDecember 23, 20051–2@ Toronto Maple Leafs (2005–06)12–17–6Recap
36WDecember 27, 20054–3 OT@ Washington Capitals (2005–06)13–17–6Recap
37LDecember 28, 20054–6@ Florida Panthers (2005–06)13–18–6Recap
38WDecember 30, 20052–1@ Tampa Bay Lightning (2005–06)14–18–6Recap :
January: 8–4–2 (home: 4–4–2; road: 4–0–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
39LJanuary 2, 20060–1Philadelphia Flyers (2005–06)14–19–6Recap
40WJanuary 5, 20064–2Ottawa Senators (2005–06)15–19–6Recap
41WJanuary 7, 20066–3Tampa Bay Lightning (2005–06)16–19–6Recap
42LJanuary 10, 20062–6San Jose Sharks (2005–06)16–20–6Recap
43LJanuary 12, 20060–6Los Angeles Kings (2005–06)16–21–6Recap
44LJanuary 14, 20061–2 SODallas Stars (2005–06)16–21–7Recap
45WJanuary 16, 20064–3 OTMighty Ducks of Anaheim (2005–06)17–21–7Recap
46WJanuary 19, 20065–2@ Philadelphia Flyers (2005–06)18–21–7Recap
47LJanuary 21, 20062–3 SONew York Rangers (2005–06)18–21–8Recap
48WJanuary 23, 20063–2@ Washington Capitals (2005–06)19–21–8Recap
49WJanuary 24, 20063–2@ Atlanta Thrashers (2005–06)20–21–8Recap
50WJanuary 26, 20063–2Washington Capitals (2005–06)21–21–8Recap
51LJanuary 28, 20063–4New York Islanders (2005–06)21–22–8Recap
52WJanuary 30, 20065–0@ Ottawa Senators (2005–06)22–22–8Recap :
February: 2–2–2 (home: 1–1–2; road: 1–1–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
53WFebruary 2, 20063–1Montreal Canadiens (2005–06)23–22–8Recap
54LFebruary 4, 20060–2@ Montreal Canadiens (2005–06)23–23–8Recap
55LFebruary 5, 20063–4 SOCarolina Hurricanes (2005–06)23–23–9Recap
56WFebruary 8, 20063–1@ Pittsburgh Penguins (2005–06)24–23–9Recap
57LFebruary 9, 20062–3 OTNew Jersey Devils (2005–06)24–23–10Recap
58LFebruary 11, 20065–6Tampa Bay Lightning (2005–06)24–24–10Recap :
March: 4–9–3 (home: 4–3–2; road: 0–6–1)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
59LMarch 1, 20063–4@ Carolina Hurricanes (2005–06)24–25–10Recap
60WMarch 2, 20063–2Atlanta Thrashers (2005–06)25–25–10Recap
61LMarch 4, 20062–3Buffalo Sabres (2005–06)25–26–10Recap
62LMarch 7, 20062–3@ Buffalo Sabres (2005–06)25–27–10Recap
63LMarch 9, 20060–3Montreal Canadiens (2005–06)25–28–10Recap
64LMarch 11, 20061–3New York Islanders (2005–06)25–29–10Recap
65LMarch 12, 20062–6@ Buffalo Sabres (2005–06)25–30–10Recap
66LMarch 14, 20064–5 SO@ Toronto Maple Leafs (2005–06)25–30–11Recap
67WMarch 16, 20063–2 SOOttawa Senators (2005–06)26–30–11Recap
68WMarch 18, 20064–2Carolina Hurricanes (2005–06)27–30–11Recap
69LMarch 20, 20062–5@ New York Rangers (2005–06)27–31–11Recap
70LMarch 21, 20064–5 SOAtlanta Thrashers (2005–06)27–31–12Recap
71LMarch 24, 20062–4@ New Jersey Devils (2005–06)27–32–12Recap
72WMarch 25, 20065–4Buffalo Sabres (2005–06)28–32–12Recap
73LMarch 27, 20063–4 SOFlorida Panthers (2005–06)28–32–13Recap
74LMarch 29, 20063–4@ Buffalo Sabres (2005–06)28–33–13Recap :
April: 1–4–3 (home: 1–1–2; road: 0–3–1)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
75LApril 1, 20060–2@ Montreal Canadiens (2005–06)28–34–13Recap
76LApril 4, 20063–5@ Montreal Canadiens (2005–06)28–35–13Recap
77WApril 6, 20063–2 SOToronto Maple Leafs (2005–06)29–35–13Recap
78LApril 8, 20063–4 OTNew York Rangers (2005–06)29–35–14Recap
79LApril 10, 20061–2 OTWashington Capitals (2005–06)29–35–15Recap
80LApril 11, 20063–4 OT@ Ottawa Senators (2005–06)29–35–16Recap
81LApril 13, 20063–4Montreal Canadiens (2005–06)29–36–16Recap
82LApril 15, 20063–4@ Atlanta Thrashers (2005–06)29–37–16Recap :
Legend:
  Win (2 points)
  Loss (0 points)
  Overtime/shootout loss (1 point) :

## Player statistics
### Scoring

* Position abbreviations: C = Center; D = Defense; G = Goaltender; LW = Left Wing; RW = Right Wing
* † = Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Bruins only.
* ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Bruins only.
| No. | Player | Pos | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season |
| No. | Player | Pos | GP | G | A | Pts | +/- | PIM |
| 37 | Patrice Bergeron | C | 81 | 31 | 42 | 73 | 3 | 22 |
| 26 | Brad Boyes | C | 82 | 26 | 43 | 69 | 11 | 30 |
| 27 | Glen Murray | RW | 64 | 24 | 29 | 53 | −8 | 52 |
| 16 | Marco Sturm† | LW | 51 | 23 | 20 | 43 | 14 | 32 |
| 14 | Sergei Samsonov‡ | LW | 55 | 18 | 19 | 37 | −3 | 22 |
| 19 | Joe Thornton‡ | C | 23 | 9 | 24 | 33 | 0 | 6 |
| 22 | Brian Leetch | D | 61 | 5 | 27 | 32 | −10 | 36 |
| 6 | Brad Stuart† | D | 55 | 10 | 21 | 31 | −6 | 38 |
| 11 | P. J. Axelsson | LW | 59 | 10 | 18 | 28 | −3 | 4 |
| 21 | Brad Isbister | LW | 58 | 6 | 17 | 23 | −2 | 46 |
| 39 | Travis Green | C | 82 | 10 | 12 | 22 | −2 | 79 |
| 71 | Jiri Slegr | D | 32 | 5 | 11 | 16 | −2 | 56 |
| 55 | David Tanabe† | D | 54 | 4 | 12 | 16 | 0 | 48 |
| 20 | Wayne Primeau† | C | 50 | 6 | 8 | 14 | −10 | 40 |
| 44 | Nick Boynton | D | 54 | 5 | 7 | 12 | −7 | 93 |
| 68 | Milan Jurcina | D | 51 | 6 | 5 | 11 | 3 | 54 |
| 12 | Tom Fitzgerald | RW | 71 | 4 | 6 | 10 | −10 | 40 |
| 38 | Dave Scatchard‡ | C | 16 | 4 | 6 | 10 | −2 | 28 |
| 25 | Hal Gill | D | 80 | 1 | 9 | 10 | −4 | 124 |
| 10 | Alexei Zhamnov | C | 24 | 1 | 9 | 10 | −4 | 30 |
| 83 | Pat Leahy | RW | 43 | 4 | 4 | 8 | −2 | 19 |
| 17 | Shawn McEachern | RW | 28 | 2 | 6 | 8 | −12 | 22 |
| 36 | Marty Reasoner† | C | 19 | 2 | 6 | 8 | −2 | 8 |
| 41 | Andrew Alberts | D | 73 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 3 | 68 |
| 47 | Eric Nickulas | RW | 16 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 2 | 8 |
| 29 | Mariusz Czerkawski† | RW | 16 | 4 | 1 | 5 | −4 | 4 |
| 28 | Dan LaCouture† | LW | 55 | 2 | 2 | 4 | −6 | 53 |
| 43 | Yan Stastny† | C | 17 | 1 | 3 | 4 | −2 | 10 |
| 18 | Ian Moran | D | 12 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 10 |
| 45 | Mark Stuart | D | 17 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −1 | 10 |
| 58 | Kevin Dallman‡ | D | 21 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 8 |
| 23 | Josh Langfeld† | RW | 18 | 0 | 1 | 1 | −6 | 10 |
| 30 | Tim Thomas | G | 38 | 0 | 1 | 1 | | 4 |
| 89 | Zdenek Blatny‡ | LW | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −2 | 2 |
| 50 | Ben Guite | RW | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 40 | Eric Healey | LW | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 48 | Jay Leach | D | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 |
| 75 | Colton Orr‡ | RW | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27 |
| 1 | Andrew Raycroft | G | 30 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0 |
| 51 | Nathan Robinson | C | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 57 | Jordan Sigalet | G | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0 |
| 33 | Hannu Toivonen | G | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 6 |
| 72 | Ben Walter | C | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 |

### Goaltending

| No. | Player | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season |
| No. | Player | GP | W | L | OT | SA | GA | GAA | SV% | SO | TOI |
| 30 | Tim Thomas | 38 | 12 | 13 | 10 | 1213 | 101 | 2.77 | .917 | 1 | 2187 |
| 33 | Hannu Toivonen | 20 | 9 | 5 | 4 | 590 | 51 | 2.63 | .914 | 1 | 1163 |
| 1 | Andrew Raycroft | 30 | 8 | 19 | 2 | 824 | 100 | 3.71 | .879 | 0 | 1619 |
| 57 | Jordan Sigalet | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | | 0 | 1 |

## Awards and records
### Awards

| Type | Award/honor | Recipient |
| League (annual) | NHL All-Rookie Team | Brad Boyes (Forward) |
| Team | Eddie Shore Award | P. J. Axelsson |
| Team | Elizabeth C. Dufresne Trophy | Patrice Bergeron |
| Team | John P. Bucyk Award | P. J. Axelsson |
| Team | Seventh Player Award | Tim Thomas |
| Team | Three Stars Awards | Patrice Bergeron (1st) |
| Team | Three Stars Awards | Brad Boyes (2nd) |
| Team | Three Stars Awards | Tim Thomas (3rd) |

### Milestones

| Milestone | Player | Date |
| First game | Andrew Alberts | October 5, 2005 |
| First game | Kevin Dallman | October 5, 2005 |
| First game | Milan Jurcina | October 8, 2005 |
| First game | Hannu Toivonen | October 8, 2005 |
| First game | Jay Leach | November 5, 2005 |
| First game | Eric Healey | November 25, 2005 |
| First game | Jordan Sigalet | January 7, 2006 |
| First game | Ben Walter | January 12, 2006 |
| First game | Ben Guite | January 30, 2006 |
| First game | Mark Stuart | March 11, 2006 |
| 1,000th point | Brian Leetch | October 18, 2005 |

## Transactions

The Bruins were involved in the following transactions from February 17, 2005, the day after the 2004–05 NHL season was officially cancelled, through June 19, 2006, the day of the deciding game of the 2006 Stanley Cup Finals.

### Trades

| Date | Details | Details |
| July 31, 2005 (2005-07-31) | To Edmonton Oilers 4th-round pick in 2006 | To Boston Bruins Brad Isbister |
| August 30, 2005 (2005-08-30) | To Edmonton Oilers Rights to Yan Stastny | To Boston Bruins Boston’s 4th-round pick in 2006 |
| November 6, 2005 (2005-11-06) | To Chicago Blackhawks Rights to Andy Hilbert | To Boston Bruins 5th-round pick in 2006 |
| November 18, 2005 (2005-11-18) | To Phoenix Coyotes Dave Scatchard | To Boston Bruins David Tanabe |
| November 30, 2005 (2005-11-30) | To San Jose Sharks Joe Thornton | To Boston Bruins Wayne PrimeauBrad StuartMarco Sturm |
| February 8, 2006 (2006-02-08) | To Tampa Bay Lightning Zdenek Blatny | To Boston Bruins Brian Eklund |
| March 9, 2006 (2006-03-09) | To Edmonton Oilers Sergei Samsonov | To Boston Bruins Marty ReasonerYan Stastny2nd-round pick in 2006 |
| May 26, 2006 (2006-05-26) | To Ottawa Senators 3rd-round pick in 2006 | To Boston Bruins Peter Chiarelli |
| June 15, 2006 (2006-06-15) | To Toronto Maple Leafs 7th-round pick in 2006 | To Boston Bruins Rights to Petr Tenkrat |

### Players acquired

| Date | Player | Former team | Term | Via |
| August 2, 2005 (2005-08-02) | Shawn McEachern | Atlanta Thrashers | 2-year | Free agency |
| August 2, 2005 (2005-08-02) | Dave Scatchard | New York Islanders | 4-year | Free agency |
| August 3, 2005 (2005-08-03) | Brian Leetch | Toronto Maple Leafs | 1-year | Free agency |
| August 4, 2005 (2005-08-04) | Alexei Zhamnov | HC Vityaz Chekhov (RUS-2) | 3-year | Free agency |
| August 12, 2005 (2005-08-12) | Jiri Slegr | HC Litvinov (ELH) | 1-year | Free agency |
| August 15, 2005 (2005-08-15) | Ben Guite | Providence Bruins (AHL) | 1-year | Free agency |
| August 15, 2005 (2005-08-15) | Eric Healey | Adler Mannheim (DEL) | 1-year | Free agency |
| August 15, 2005 (2005-08-15) | Jason MacDonald | Toronto Maple Leafs | 1-year | Free agency |
| August 15, 2005 (2005-08-15) | Nathan Robinson | Detroit Red Wings | 1-year | Free agency |
| August 23, 2005 (2005-08-23) | Jay Leach | Providence Bruins (AHL) | 2-year | Free agency |
| August 23, 2005 (2005-08-23) | Eric Nickulas | Chicago Blackhawks | 1-year | Free agency |
| August 23, 2005 (2005-08-23) | Garret Stroshein | Washington Capitals | 1-year | Free agency |
| September 7, 2005 (2005-09-07) | Pat Leahy | Providence Bruins (AHL) | 1-year | Free agency |
| September 7, 2005 (2005-09-07) | Tyler Redenbach | Lethbridge Hurricanes (WHL) | 3-year | Free agency |
| September 7, 2005 (2005-09-07) | Jeremy Reich | Columbus Blue Jackets | 1-year | Free agency |
| September 14, 2005 (2005-09-14) | Tim Thomas | Jokerit (Liiga) | 1-year | Free agency |
| September 30, 2005 (2005-09-30) | Zdenek Blatny | Orli Znojmo (ELH) | | Free agency |
| November 24, 2005 (2005-11-24) | Dan LaCouture | HC Davos (NLA) | | Free agency |
| January 19, 2006 (2006-01-19) | Craig Anderson | Chicago Blackhawks | | Waivers |
| January 31, 2006 (2006-01-31) | Josh Langfeld | San Jose Sharks | | Waivers |
| March 8, 2006 (2006-03-08) | Mariusz Czerkawski | Toronto Maple Leafs | | Waivers |

### Players lost

| Date | Player | New team | Via |
| August 1, 2005 (2005-08-01) | P. J. Stock | | Contract expiration (UFA) |
| August 3, 2005 (2005-08-03) | Sergei Gonchar | Pittsburgh Penguins | Free agency (III) |
| August 4, 2005 (2005-08-04) | Martin Lapointe | Chicago Blackhawks | Free agency (III) |
| October 5, 2005 (2005-10-05) | Kris Vernarsky | Motor City Mechanics (UHL) | Free agency (UFA) |
| October 6, 2005 (2005-10-06) | Martin Samuelsson | Linkoping HC (SHL) | Free agency (II) |
| November 29, 2005 (2005-11-29) | Colton Orr | New York Rangers | Waivers |
| November 30, 2005 (2005-11-30) | Jonathan Girard | | Retirement |
| December 3, 2005 (2005-12-03) | Kevin Dallman | St. Louis Blues | Waivers |
| January 31, 2006 (2006-01-31) | Craig Anderson | St. Louis Blues | Waivers |
| June 19, 2006 (2006-06-19) | Eric Nickulas | Hannover Scorpions (DEL) | Free agency |
| June 19, 2006 (2006-06-19) | Nathan Robinson | Adler Mannheim (DEL) | Free agency |

### Signings

| Date | Player | Term | Contract type |
| July 28, 2005 (2005-07-28) | Mike Brown | 3-year | Entry-level |
| July 28, 2005 (2005-07-28) | Nate Thompson | 3-year | Entry-level |
| July 30, 2005 (2005-07-30) | Andrew Alberts | 1-year | Entry-level |
| July 30, 2005 (2005-07-30) | Mark Stuart | 3-year | Entry-level |
| August 2, 2005 (2005-08-02) | Glen Murray | 4-year | Re-signing |
| August 10, 2005 (2005-08-10) | P. J. Axelsson | 1-year | Re-signing |
| August 10, 2005 (2005-08-10) | Jonathan Girard | 1-year | Re-signing |
| August 10, 2005 (2005-08-10) | Sergei Samsonov | 1-year | Re-signing |
| August 10, 2005 (2005-08-10) | Jordan Sigalet | 1-year | Entry-level |
| August 11, 2005 (2005-08-11) | Joe Thornton | 3-year | Re-signing |
| August 15, 2005 (2005-08-15) | Brad Boyes | 1-year | Re-signing |
| August 15, 2005 (2005-08-15) | Kevin Dallman | 1-year | Re-signing |
| August 15, 2005 (2005-08-15) | Jonathan Sigalet | 3-year | Entry-level |
| August 17, 2005 (2005-08-17) | Travis Green | 2-year | Re-signing |
| August 30, 2005 (2005-08-30) | Hal Gill | 1-year | Re-signing |
| August 31, 2005 (2005-08-31) | Ben Walter | 3-year | Entry-level |
| September 7, 2005 (2005-09-07) | Colton Orr | 1-year | Re-signing |
| September 16, 2005 (2005-09-16) | Andrew Raycroft | 1-year | Re-signing |
| October 13, 2005 (2005-10-13) | Nick Boynton | 1-year | Re-signing |
| March 18, 2006 (2006-03-18) | Tim Thomas | 3-year | Extension |
| March 23, 2006 (2006-03-23) | P. J. Axelsson | 3-year | Extension |
| March 24, 2006 (2006-03-24) | Matt Lashoff | 3-year | Entry-level |
| May 8, 2006 (2006-05-08) | Petr Kalus | 3-year | Entry-level |
| May 22, 2006 (2006-05-22) | Martins Karsums | 3-year | Entry-level |
| May 22, 2006 (2006-05-22) | David Krejci | 3-year | Entry-level |
| June 1, 2006 (2006-06-01) | Kris Versteeg | 3-year | Entry-level |
| June 15, 2006 (2006-06-15) | Petr Tenkrat | 1-year | Re-signing |

## Draft picks

The 2005 NHL Entry Draft was the 43rd NHL entry draft. As a lockout cancelled the 2004–05 NHL season, the draft order was determined by lottery on July 22, 2005. Teams were assigned 1 to 3 balls based on their playoff appearances and first overall draft picks from the past three years. According to the draft order, the selection worked its way up to 30 as usual; then instead of repeating the order as in past years, the draft "snaked" back down to the team with the first pick. Therefore the team with the first pick overall would not pick again until the 60th pick. The team with the 30th pick would also get the 31st pick. The draft was only seven rounds in length, compared to nine rounds in years past. The labor dispute caused the shortened draft.
* Boston's picks at the 2005 NHL entry draft in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
| Round | # | Player | Nationality | College/Junior/Club team (League) |
| 1 | 22 | Matt Lashoff | United States | Kitchener Rangers (OHL) |
| 2 | 39 | Petr Kalus | Czech Republic | HC Vítkovice (Czech Republic) |
| 3 | 83 | Mikko Lehtonen | Finland | Espoo Blues Jr. (Finland) |
| 4 | 100 | Jonathan Sigalet | United States | Bowling Green State University (CCHA) |
| 4 | 106 | Vladimir Sobotka | Czech Republic | HC Slavia Prague Jr. (Czech Republic) |
| 5 | 154 | Wacey Rabbit | Canada | Saskatoon Blades (WHL) |
| 6 | 172 | Lukas Vantuch | Czech Republic | Bílí Tygři Liberec Jr. (Czech Republic) |
| 7 | 217 | Brock Bradford | Canada | Omaha Lancers (USHL) |

## Farm teams

The Bruins' American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate was the Providence Bruins. The Bruins had 43 wins and 92 points and finished in fourth place in their division. The Bruins were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs against Portland. Eric Healey and Tim Thomas were selected to the AHL All-Star Game and Healey was the captain for PlanetUSA. Jonathan Sigalet was nominated for the AHL Man of the Year Award.