Bruins sign Victor Soderstrom to one-year contract

On Saturday, Boston Bruins general manager Don Sweeney announced the team has signed defenseman Victor Soderstrom to a one-year, two-way contract.

The deal, which is set for the 2025-26 season, has an NHL AAV of $775,000.

The signing comes a day after the Bruins acquired Soderstrom’s signing rights from the Chicago Blackhawks. In return, the Bruins had to give up fellow rearguard Ryan Mast and a seventh-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft.

Soderstrom was a pending restricted free agent, having just finished up the entry-level contract he signed with the Utah Mammoth – formerly known as the Arizona Coyotes. That deal carried an AAV of $1,523,333 thanks to performance bonuses and signing bonuses as part of the contract.

The 24-year-old found his way on the Blackhawks payroll after the team traded for him, along with Aku Raty and Shea Weber’s contract, for a 2026 fifth-round pick back on March 7.

While Soderstrom saw some considerable time in the NHL with the Coyotes during the 2021-22 and 2022-23 campaigns, he has not seen action at the top level since March 10, 2024. He spent the entire 2024-25 season in the Swedish Hockey League with Brynäs IF. In 49 games, he scored nine goals and 28 assists for 37 points, including another eight points in 17 playoff games. With Soderstrom, Brynäs finished with the best record during the regular season, ultimately losing in the final to Luleå HF.

Soderstrom won the Salming Trophy as the Swedish Defenseman of the Year.

The Skutskär, Sweden native, was originally taken in the first round, 11th overall, by the Coyotes in the 2019 draft, having spent most of his North American pro career in the American Hockey League with the Tucson Roadrunners. In 170 AHL appearances, he has scored 16 goals and 66 assists for 82 points.

In 53 NHL games with the Coyotes, Soderstrom has notched a goal and 10 assists for 11 points.