With training camp only about two weeks away and the Bruins’ first preseason game coming in 30 days, one of the few unresolved items left on Boston’s offseason checklist is Matthew Poitras.
Poitras is still unsigned, and the 22-year-old remains a restricted free agent as the Bruins try to put the finishing touches on a summer that already included major moves. Boston traded two first-round picks for JJ Peterka and added two right-shot defensemen, Connor Clifton and Will Borgen, but the Poitras situation is still hanging out there.
A second-round pick in the 2022 NHL Draft, Poitras has shown enough to make himself part of the conversation. He has 69 NHL games on his résumé, with six goals and 26 points across his first 66 games, and he added one goal in three NHL games this past season. At the same time, his progress has stalled over the last 18 months and change, and the Bruins’ center depth has shifted around him.
Both of the team’s other young centers, and James Hagens, have moved ahead of Poitras on the organizational depth chart, which has fueled the questions about where he fits in Boston’s future. That uncertainty has only grown with trade rumors swirling around him.
The roster math is messy, too. Keeping Poitras would likely mean the Bruins would have to waive both Mikey Eyssimont and Alex Steeves, or move just one of them while sending Hagens to Providence to start the season.
Neither route looks especially attractive. Boston likes what Eyssimont and Steeves bring, and the organization is also high on Hagens’ upside. At the same time, the Bruins are not eager to simply move on from Poitras.
For now, there’s still time to work it out. But as camp draws closer, this is the kind of situation that can quickly become one of the bigger stories around the team.
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The challenge is simple on paper and tricky in practice. Zacha has had stretches that make him look like a clear fit, but there is still the question of whether this level is his new baseline or a peak the Bruins may not want to pay for long term, especially with Elias Lindholms health still part of the equation and younger centers waiting for a bigger opportunity. [Read more 🡒]