The Bruins got one of their last offseason boxes checked on Wednesday, agreeing to terms with Matthew Poitras on a one-year, two-way deal worth the NHL league minimum of $850,000.
Poitras was the final restricted free agent on Boston’s board still without a contract as training camp opened, though there were no on-ice sessions scheduled for the day. Now the 22-year-old can turn his attention to camp and the fight for a spot on the opening night roster.
That battle is a real one. If Poitras doesn’t make the team, he would need waivers to be sent back to Providence - and Boston would have a hard time assuming he’d get through. The Bruins also wouldn’t want to lose him for nothing.
Boston drafted Poitras in the second round in 2022, and he has grown into one of the organization’s more interesting young pieces. Last season, though, he spent most of his time in Providence, where he played 69 games and put up 13 goals and 44 points. He also appeared in three NHL games and scored once.
The wrinkle for Poitras is the depth chart around him. James Hagens has moved ahead of him among Bruins centers, and that has only added fuel to the questions about Poitras’ future, especially with trade talk following him around.
The competition doesn’t stop there. Boston also got meaningful work from depth forwards Mikey Eyssimont and Alex Steeves last season, with both helping fill holes across the lineup when injuries hit. For Poitras to break through, he’d likely have to jump over two of those players, and three of the four - everyone except Hagens - would need waivers to go back to Providence.
The Bruins still have decisions to make, but the calendar is tightening fast. This isn’t one of those long, drawn-out camps that stretch for weeks.
Boston has only four preseason games this year, not six. The season begins in 13 days, the roster has to be set in 12, and waiver cuts could come as soon as Sunday the 27th.
At this point, the cleanest paths for the Bruins seem pretty clear: trade Poitras, try to sneak him through waivers, or keep him on the opening night roster if he earns it. If he does make the team, it likely comes at the expense of Steeves or Eyssimont, while Hagens could start the year in Providence.
Boston would probably prefer not to lose either Steeves or Eyssimont. Both have shown they can handle the grind as versatile 13th forwards, ready to slide into different spots whenever the Bruins need them.
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Pavel Zacha sits right in the middle of that conversation, with his contract situation still hanging over the roster picture as the organization weighs short-term fit against longer-term flexibility. Add in Casey Mittelstadt, who is also in the final year of his deal, and the Bruins have a top-six puzzle that touches everything from the salary cap to the development path for younger forwards like James Hagens and Dans Locmelis. The decisions made over the next few weeks could shape not just this fall, but how Boston approaches the future. [Read more 🡒]
Bruins Are Letting One Early Camp Frustration Grow Fast
Training camp has opened with one obvious piece missing from the Bruins usual dress code. Since Brad Marchand was traded in March, Boston has gone into the new season without naming a captain, and a recent preseason photo shoot only underlined the point as the leadership group seemed to spread more broadly across the room.
Charlie McAvoy, David Pastrnak and Hampus Lindholm all were shown wearing alternate captain patches, a sign of how the team is leaning on several voices at once. Still, no Bruins player wore the captains C, and with other NHL teams already setting their leadership for the year ahead, Bostons answer to that vacancy remains one of camps most noticeable unresolved issues. [Read more 🡒]