Boston Bruins re-sign Jakub Lauko and Kyle Keyser to NHL contracts

The Boston Bruins have re-signed forward Jakub Lauko and goaltender Kyle Keyser. Lauko’s contract is a two-year deal worth $787,500 in the NHL annually and is two-way for the first year and one-way for the second and final year of the contract. Keyser was signed to a one-year, two-way contract worth $775,000 in the NHL.

Lauko played the 2022-23 season split between Boston and their AHL affiliate, the Providence Bruins. He scored four goals and seven points in 23 games for the big club as well as 10 goals and 17 points in 35 games in the AHL. He was originally selected in the third-round of the 2018 NHL Draft by the Bruins and is in his fourth professional season with Providence. For most of that time he has been a depth scorer in the Bruins’ organisation.

He played 134 games in the AHL over the last four seasons, scoring 23 goals and 71 points in that span. Those aren’t bad numbers but he will need to do more than that to prove that he’s worthy of a full-time job in the NHL.

Keyser has never played an NHL game and was never drafted into the NHL either. The 24 year old netminder split time this past season with Keith Kinkaid and Brandon Bussi in the AHL. In 24 games played, he earned a record of 13-6-2 with a 2.79 GAA and .900 SV%. That’s the second consecutive solid season he’s had in the Bruins’ organisation and they have noticed.

In 2021-22, Keyser put up a 2.75 GAA and .908 SV% in his first full AHL season. He worked his way up from the Oshawa Generals in the OHL to being the starting goalie for the Jacksonville Icemen in the ECHL and now he is in a tandem with a former NHL starting goalie.