The Boston Bruins thought they had a steal when Matthew Poitras debuted in 2023-24. He stole a spot out of training camp after a breakout year in the Ontario Hockey League, and didn't look back for the season's first three months. He started to slow down midway through the year, which led the Bruins to loan him to Team Canada for the World Junior Championship, a move that proved to be costly for his health.
Poitras took a beating at that tournament, and it was the lingering effects that ultimately led to a shoulder injury, which would keep him out for the rest of the year. Clearly, Poitras needed to add some size to his frame to avoid future injuries, which led him to split last season between Boston and Providence.
It seemed like last season was a disappointment for Poitras, but the confidence boost of playing in Providence was something he needed. He ended up playing the same number of games with Boston as in his rookie season, and poor scoring luck was the only thing that stood in his way of improving on his numbers.
There are some parts of Poitras' game where he needs to improve, namely in his avoidance of taking contact and keeping himself available over an 82-game season. It's a combination of playing smarter and also bulking up to be able to take more contact. Reports out of Boston say that Poitras has been working hard to become a regular in 2025-26, and we'll soon see if that's true with training camp starting in a matter of weeks.
Can Matthew Poitras take a top-six spot?
The Bruins' top-six could get very ugly if Morgan Geekie doesn't replicate last season's form or the acquisition of Viktor Arvidsson proves to be a bust. There are also plenty of questions about Elias Lindholm in his second season and whether Pavel Zacha will be a Bruin for the entire season. Marco Sturm and Don Sweeney would love to see someone step up and fill a void, and Poitras could be that player.
Bruins fans fell in love with the Geekie, Lindholm, Pastrnak line to end last season. It was a line that finally showed the value of Lindholm and put Geekie in the best position to have a breakout season. It'd be a tough sell to split up Pastrnak and Geekie this season, but some underlying metrics show a way that Sturm can add some depth down the lineup.
Small sample size. pic.twitter.com/6n1HAxClpK
— Dominic Tiano (@dominictiano) July 8, 2025
As X user Dominic Tiano notes, it is a small sample size, but Poitras showed glimpses of being an elite producer when put between Pastrnak and Geekie. We'd have to see it succeed over a longer stretch to lock Poitras in as the first-line center, but there is a chance that he is the answer to the top-six issue.
As the old saying goes, the best ability is availability. If Poitras wants to lock down his spot, he will have to stay healthy, but if he does, it could be a breakout season coming for the playmaking center.
The Bruins don't have a whole lot of reason for optimism this season, so why not add some intrigue to training camp and see if they can take Poitras' career to the next level?