If the Bruins handed out the NESN 7th Player Award today and I had a ballot in my hands, I know exactly how I’d fill it out.
The award is supposed to go to the guy who goes above and beyond expectations, the player who isn’t the obvious star but becomes a huge part of why the team is winning. With that in mind, here’s how my ballot would look, from third place up to the winner.
3. Mark Kastelic – My third-place vote
If I were voting today, my third-place vote would go to Mark Kastelic.
When the season started, I thought of Kastelic as solid depth. A fourth-line center who could bring some size, kill penalties, and maybe shuffle in and out of the lineup depending on matchups. Instead, he’s become a tone-setter every night.
Kastelic has given the Bruins exactly what they’ve been missing in their bottom six: a big, responsible, hard-to-play-against center who can handle tough shifts and not just hang on, but tilt the ice a bit. He wins draws, finishes his checks, eats defensive-zone starts, and stabilizes whatever line he’s on.
He’s chipped in enough offense to matter, but it’s the way he plays that stands out. When Boston is rolling, their fourth line doesn’t just survive; it drags the game into the Bruins’ kind of night. Kastelic has helped drag it there more often than not. For a guy who easily could have bounced between the press box and the lineup, he’s locked down a real role.
That jump from “extra body” to “every-night identity piece” is exactly why he’d be on my ballot.
2. Marat Khusnutdinov – My second-place vote
My second-place vote would go to Marat Khusnutdinov.
When the Bruins picked him up, he felt like a nice upside swing. A skilled, undersized forward with speed and some KHL pedigree who might need time to truly adjust to the NHL. I expected flashes, maybe some movement between the lineup and the press box, and, hopefully, a full-time spot down the road.
He’s ahead of that timetable.
Khusnutdinov has played his way into a regular role and, more importantly, into the kind of trust you don’t give lightly. When injuries hit the top six, he wasn’t just a plug-in name; he actually helped drive play. You can see it in his pace, his forecheck, and the way he makes life miserable for defensemen trying to break the puck out cleanly.
He’s contributed on the scoresheet, but again, the story is bigger than the raw numbers. He’s shown he can play center or wing, take special-teams minutes, and bring energy every single shift. That’s a long way from “deadline curiosity.”
If he keeps trending like this, it wouldn’t shock me if, by the end of the year, I was talking myself into moving him up to the top spot. For now, he’s my clear No. 2.
1. Morgan Geekie – My 7th Player winner (for now)
If I were voting today, my first-place vote and the 7th Player Award would go to Morgan Geekie.
What makes Geekie’s case so strong, to me, is that he isn’t coming out of nowhere. There were already expectations attached to him after last season and after he signed his contract. This wasn’t some mystery seventh forward suddenly discovering he can score. Going into the year, the bar for Geekie was real.
Based on last season and the deal he signed, I expected him to be a reliable middle-six forward. Someone who could drive a line, chip in secondary scoring, help on the power play, and hold his own if he got spot duty next to David Pastrnak. That’s already a pretty high standard.
He’s blown past it.
Instead of “reliable middle-six,” Geekie has played like a premier finisher. He’s scoring at five-on-five, he’s dangerous on the power play, and he’s turned into one of the guys you look for on the ice when the Bruins absolutely need a goal. Nights where he was supposed to just complement Pastrnak have turned into nights where he’s leading the way.
That’s why he feels like the true 7th Player to me. It’s one thing for a depth guy with no expectations to suddenly pop; it’s another thing entirely for a player who already had something to live up to—last year’s breakout, the contract, a bigger role—to not only meet that bar but clear it.
Geekie walked into this season with pressure and expectations, and has still managed to make people rewrite what they think his ceiling is. For an award that’s all about outperforming what everyone thought was possible, that’s the strongest argument anyone on the roster has.