Bruins sign Jordan Oesterle to two-year, two-way contract

The team from New England is enhancing some organizational depth on the back end.

On Monday, the Boston Bruins signed defenseman Jordan Oesterle to a two-year, two-way contract. The deal carries a cap hit of $775,000 through the 2025-26 season, with a minor-league salary of $425,000.

It is Oesterle’s third team in three years. The Dearborn Heights, Michigan native spent the 2023-24 campaign with the Calgary Flames on a one-year, $925,000 contract. He was placed on waivers in early November and went on to join the Flames’ American Hockey League affiliate, the Calgary Wranglers.

He would go back and forth between the Flames and Wranglers through the season. In 22 games with the Flames, Oesterle registered two assists and a plus/minus of -6. In 30 appearances with the Wranglers, the former Western Michigan University star scored two goals and 19 points, with a -10 rating. He also picked up an assist in six Calder Cup Playoff games, as the Wranglers were eliminated in the Pacific Division Semifinals by the Coachella Valley Firebirds, the eventual Western Conference champions.

Oesterle went undrafted, and was signed out of college by the Edmonton Oilers. He split the first three seasons of his career with the Oilers and Bakersfield Condors before signing with the Chicago Blackhawks in 2017. He was eventually traded to the Arizona Coyotes in July 2018, the same deal that saw Chicago offload Marian Hossa’s contract to the Coyotes.

Following three seasons with the ‘Yotes, Oesterle joined his hometown team, the Detroit Red Wings, in 2021.

In 371 NHL games, Oesterle has scored 19 goals and 67 assists, including four points in nine playoff games. In 187 AHL appearances, he has notched 22 goals and 80 assists, with five points in 17 playoff games.

With the signing, the Bruins have 38 standard player contracts on the books for next season. According to CapFriendly, Boston has under $8 million in projected cap space for the 2024-25 campaign.