![Feb 4, 2026; Sunrise, Florida, USA; ]Boston Bruins center Matthew Poitras (51) moves the puck against Florida Panthers center Anton Lundell (15) during the first period at Amerant Bank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,x_0,y_0,w_3898,h_2192/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImagnImages/mmsport/74/01kgqp53zcv9mg6zv1yg.jpg "Feb 4, 2026; Sunrise, Florida, USA; ]Boston Bruins center Matthew Poitras (51) moves the puck against Florida Panthers center Anton Lundell (15) during the first period at Amerant Bank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images")
Shortly after the Boston Bruins lost, 5-4, in a shootout to the Florida Panthers on Wednesday night, a lot of talk was about the headshot hit from Panthers forward Sandis Vilmanis to Boston defenseman Charlie McAvoy in the first period. However, before the Black and Gold went their separate ways for the Olympic Break, there was one roster transaction announced.
The Bruins announced they were sending prospect Matthew Poitras to the Providence Bruins in the American Hockey League (AHL) for the next three weeks. This is a good move by the front office, as he can't afford to sit around not play in any games for three weeks. Staying sharp in the AHL is the right choice.
Bruins send Matthew Poitras to AHL for Olympic break
After being buried in Providence to begin the season, Poitras came up with Boston lost Elias Lindholm and Pavel Zacha to upper-body injuries. In three games, Poitras had one goal while averaging 12:07 a game against the Philadelphia Flyers, Tampa Bay Lightning, and Panthers. He scored a goal on a beautiful backhander against Tampa Bay in Sunday night's Stadium Series game.
After being in the AHL for nearly a year, what does the future hold for Poitras in Boston? Will he be back up after the break? Is there any truth to the rumor that there is 100% happiness between Poitras and the team? He put that to rest earlier this week by saying he was happy with the Bruins. What else is he going to say?
Some have thrown around the theory that Poitras was brought up as an injury replacement for a showcase with the NHL trade deadline closing in on March 6, a little over a week after games resume following the break. That seems like a bit of a stretch, but Don Sweeney's path next month remains unclear.
Giving up on the 54th overall pick in the second round of the 2022 Entry Draft right now doesn't seem like something the Black and Gold might do, but the decisions coming after the break are going to be telling.