The Boston Bruins won four of the six games Charlie McAvoy missed while suspended. The rest of the team proved they could succeed without one of their biggest stars, but that doesn't mean they didn't miss him, and since he returned, we're seeing that this team could be the real deal.
McAvoy has unlocked his offense over the past few seasons, but we needed to see him do it at both ends. The defender can lay down some booming checks and break up plays, but he sometimes got caught doing too much and ended up out of position in the defensive zone.
His defensive style didn't mesh well with Marco Sturm's system last season, and a tumultuous two-year injury stretch might've slowed him down a bit. With a long offseason to get healthy and extra rest during his suspension, McAvoy now looks better than he has in years.
The Bruins rotated their defense pairings evenly during the six games he was out, but the coaches couldn't deny the team's star. He played 24:41 in his first game back, looking like he didn't miss a step, then averaged over 26 minutes in his next three. The 6-0 blowout of the Nashville Predators kept him under 20 minutes.
Ironically, in the game where he played under 20 minutes, he had his best offensive output, recording four assists. One of my biggest gripes with McAvoy quarterbacking the first powerplay unit is his decision-making when trying to get pucks through; grabbing an assist on a tip from Elias Lindholm with the man advantage, and adding another assist at even strength on a David Pastrnak tip, is a great sign of growth.
Charlie McAvoy's game is still growing
We weren't so sure McAvoy could reach a level where he was a legitimate Norris Trophy contender, but if the Bruins keep winning and he has the same impact he did over the first five games since his suspension, the hype will build.
McAvoy's offensive output has to be taken with a grain of salt: he is over a point-per-game pace right now, but four of those came in one game. Still, his defense has been just as good, and he was back to being a physical force on Thursday night.
The Norris Trophy has become an offensive defenseman's award, but some NHL fans would like to see it return to valuing defense a bit more. If McAvoy continues trending this way, there's little doubt he is one of the best two-way defensemen in the league this season.
Add us as a preferred source on Google