The NHL’s next All-Star Game is already taking shape, and the league is trying something new for 2027 on Long Island. Instead of the usual setup, players will be divided into teams from Canada, the United States, Sweden, Finland, and the world.
That last one is the oddball, and it’s hard not to hear it in a Norm Macdonald voice. It does feel a little like the rest of hockey got lumped into one bucket, the same way the Four Nations tournament left out plenty of the sport’s global talent. At least this time, everybody gets a seat at the table.
NHL.com has already put together a projected roster for the world team, and it looks loaded. The group includes nine forwards and no defensemen, which sounds reckless until you remember what kind of game this is. It’s 3-on-3, it’s the All-Star Game, and defense is usually more of a suggestion than a requirement.
Whether the new format turns the event into must-watch TV is another question. But it should be fun.
Back in Bruins land, July is winding down and the offseason has settled into its usual quiet stretch. Still, there are a few things worth keeping an eye on.
The Boston Globe’s Jim McBride recently dug into Boston’s habit of drafting tall blueliners, and it certainly doesn’t look accidental.
Mikey Eyssimont also remains part of the conversation. He sounded like a player who didn’t expect to be back in Boston next season when he spoke at the end of the last campaign, and Boston Sports Journal noted that he is still in the mix while wondering what comes next.
James Hagens, meanwhile, spoke to the Boston Herald about how “pressure is privilege” and what he expects from his first full NHL season.
And The Athletic took a swing at a different kind of list, ranking the biggest on-ice villain for each NHL franchise. I first read it as a list of each team’s biggest villain for on-ice activity, but that wasn’t the idea.
The piece was about who each fanbase sees as the biggest villain against its team, with the Bruins’ pick being Ulf Samuelsson. Some of the choices are obvious, and some are a little more amusing - like the Hurricanes landing on Erik Haula.
In Other News...
Former Bruins Goalie Prospect Reached A Career Turning Point
Michael Hutchinsons pro career has reached its end, closing the book on a goaltender whose NHL path stretched well beyond the organization that first saw enough in him to make him a draft pick. Boston selected Hutchinson in 2008, and while he never appeared in an NHL game for the Bruins, his career still became a long tour through the league, with stops that included Winnipeg, Florida, Toronto, Colorado, Columbus and Detroit.
For Bruins fans, Hutchinson is one of those names that lingers in the background of a draft class, a player whose rights once belonged to Boston before his career took shape elsewhere. His time in the NHL was defined by persistence and movement, and his retirement marks the end of an 11-season run that carried him across several teams and several different roles in goal. [Read more 🡒]
Bruins Are At Another Familiar Crossroads With Matthew Poitras
Matthew Poitras is once again sitting in a spot the Bruins know all too well with a young player and a contract that has not been settled. The restricted free agent remains unsigned in late July, and the gap here is less about talent than about role, value and how Boston wants to handle a prospect who has already flashed enough to matter while still needing a clearer path.
Poitras had an NHL opening out of training camp in 2023, but surgery in February 2024 derailed that momentum and left him back with Providence. Now the Bruins have to decide whether to bring him in before training camp opens in mid-September or explore a trade, and the clock is ticking on a situation that could shape both his future and a roster spot Boston may want to use more immediately. [Read more 🡒]
Bruins Keep Running Into The Same Prospect Problem Again
The Bruins have spent years trying to thread the needle between staying competitive in the present and building something sturdier for later, but the pipeline still keeps drawing scrutiny. Under Don Sweeney, the organization has made plenty of draft picks and, by one recent ranking, nudged its prospect pool into the middle of the pack, yet the broader conversation around Boston remains the same: there is still a real gap between adding talent and actually developing it into NHL help.
Part of the concern is structural, with changes around the Providence Bruins adding another layer to an already familiar problem. When prospects are moving through the system, changing representation, or even hesitating to commit to the AHL path, it becomes harder for the Bruins to sell a clear development plan, and that is where the long-term stakes sit for a team that has too often leaned toward immediate wins over patiently building its next wave. [Read more 🡒]