Boston Bruins
“He is positively taking part in one of the best hockey I’ve seen from him.”
Charlie McAvoy was able to put 2025 within the rearview mirror.
This previous yr was one in every of frustration and several other health-related setbacks for the Bruins defenseman.
As Boston struggled to drag itself out of a season-ending tailspin in 2024-25, McAvoy missed the ultimate two months of the common season after struggling a shoulder damage through the 4 Nations Face-Off match.
A subsequent an infection in stated shoulder required an extended stay at Mass. General Hospital — the place he underwent an irrigation and debridement process and wanted a gentle regiment of antibiotics that carried over into April.
Even the clear slate introduced upon by a brand new season was undercut by McAvoy touchdown on the shelf as soon as once more with a brutal damage this fall.
In a win over Montreal on Nov. 15, a slap shot caught McAvoy sq. within the mouth — fracturing his jaw and knocking out a number of enamel. He returned to recreation motion lower than a month later, despite having lost 20 pounds on a liquid diet and needing a metal plate in his shattered joint.
The remnants of that damage are nonetheless evident, be it the bubble that McAvoy dons on the ice or the scar (and lacking enamel) that may be simply gleaned when he fields questions from the media.
However by the primary three weeks of 2026, McAvoy is feeling good about the place his recreation is at.
“I attempted to maintain all that in 2025 was what I stated,” McAvoy stated Thursday of his earlier damage woes. “It wasn’t my yr. And since we turned the calendar, it’s been an amazing month of January for me and my household. Bumps and bruises are part of it. Simply hope it’s nothing greater than that.”
It ought to come as little shock that the Bruins are taking part in a few of their finest hockey on the identical time that McAvoy is dominating out on the ice.
Following Thursday’s 4-3 win over the Golden Knights, the Bruins have received 9 out of their final 11 video games. Throughout that stretch, McAvoy has posted 11 factors (three objectives, eight factors), sported a plus-eight ranking, and averaged 24:49 of ice time per contest.
“He’s been excellent as of late, for some time now,” Marco Sturm stated of his high defenseman on Thursday. “He’s like a horse on the market. It’s virtually like — you need to play him for 60 minutes, as a result of he does the whole lot proper, proper now.
“I’m simply very proud of the way in which he’s taking part in proper now, and particularly these essential moments within the recreation the place we have to keep calm and be in the correct spot,” he added. “And he’s been there for us all yr lengthy.”
McAvoy had his fingerprints throughout Boston’s win over Vegas on Thursday, opening a salvo of three goals in 54 seconds with a power-play tally at 9:12 within the first interval.
Together with logging a team-leading 27:01 of ice time, he additionally made key performs down the opposite finish of the ice — blocking a pair of photographs from Jack Eichel whereas defending a one-goal lead within the closing minutes of the third interval.
“I’ll be sore,” McAvoy stated of getting in entrance of Eichel’s blistering photographs. “We are saying it in right here, like, it was my flip. Typically it’s your flip. It was my flip. So you bought to dam that shot. And we obtained to see this factor by.
“Two factors is large for us and what this crew is making an attempt to perform. So I wasn’t simply that. Plenty of guys stepped up and made large performs tonight, however , within the second, it was simply my flip.”
McAvoy’s heavy workload and willingness to do the soiled work has been well-established, as is his potential to contribute offensively at 5-on-5 play.
Boston has outscored opponents, 10-5, during the 122 minutes of 5-on-5 ice time {that a} D pairing of McAvoy and Jonathan Aspirot has been on the ice this season.
However McAvoy has additionally made strides this season because the QB of Boston’s energy play — an space of his recreation that had often been rife with inconsistency.
Throughout a 2024-25 season the place Boston’s energy play ranked twenty ninth within the NHL (15.2 %), a Bruins man benefit that includes McAvoy and David Pastrnak generated 3.97 objectives per 60 minutes.
This yr, that scoring rate has surged to 12.16 goals per 60 minutes when Pastrnak and McAvoy are each out on the ice on the ability play — with McAvoy’s faster passing and willingness to shoot from the excessive slot making Boston’s man benefit way more unpredictable and deadly.
Boston’s energy play at present ranks fifth within the NHL at 25.5 %, and has cashed in on 33.3 % of its bids (10-for-30) over these final 11 video games.
The Bruins — now three factors away from groups beneath them as the ultimate wild-card membership within the Jap Convention — have six video games to go earlier than the Olympic break.
If McAvoy retains taking part in at this degree, the Bruins ought to have a chief alternative to additional cement their standing as a viable playoff membership earlier than an prolonged layoff.
“He’s taking part in excellent,” Sturm stated of McAvoy’s play final week. “Even off the ice. I really feel like he rising as a frontrunner, too. Does a whole lot of the correct issues, takes care of himself too.
“I believe he’s in a great spot proper now. I imply, you guys noticed him greater than I did up to now. … I used to be at all times a giant fan of him, however as of proper now, he’s positively taking part in one of the best hockey I’ve seen from him.”
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