By: Ryan Bosworth | Follow me on Twitter/X @RyanJBosworth
Charlie McAvoy has never played a full 82-game season. Some pretty unlucky injuries have gone his way, and despite facing all of them, he’s still proven he’s one of the National Hockey League’s best defensemen, and a cornerstone of this new era of Bruins hockey.
His injuries have never piled up like they had in 2025. A separated shoulder in the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament that led to a staph infection causing him to miss most of the 2024-25 season, to a broken jaw after taking a slapshot to the face.
Even after returning from his broken jaw, where he only missed 11 total games, he’s had multiple run-ins with injury scares. He got an elbow to the head when the Bruins faced Florida right before the Olympics, he’s gotten another puck to the face, and Tuesday night, he got hit from behind and lost and chipped more teeth.
It’s pretty obvious, but Charlie McAvoy has faced more than a little adversity over the past 13 months — and it hasn’t slowed him down a bit.
He’s currently on pace for 62 points if he plays in all 18 of the Bruins’ remaining games, which tops his recent career-high of 56 points in the 2021-22 season, and he only missed four games that year. If he were able to play the full 82-game season? He’d be on pace for 72 points, improving his career-high by almost 20 points.
McAvoy’s teammates and head coach haven’t been quiet about his season, either. They’ve all spoken very highly of him, his performance this season, and the resilience he’s shown despite all that’s been thrown his way.
“He’s been outstanding all year long, so I didn’t see anything different. He’s been there at the key moments, and that’s what I love about him,” head coach Marco Sturm said. “He’s a winner. And he showed it again every time he’s out there. So no, I’m just very happy with his performance all year long, on and off the ice, too.”
Not only his head coach, but his teammates as well, as goaltender Jeremy Swayman commented, “He’s tough as nails, man. You always know he’s going to respond to whatever comes his way.“ He went on to state that McAvoy is a “special individual on our team.”
McAvoy isn’t hiding his frustration, though. He got additional dental work done following Tuesday’s victory, so he had a short media availability. When asked about dealing with all of the injuries that have come his way, he responded, stating, “You know, I wish the hits would stop coming, honestly. My mouth honestly can’t even feel worse.”
The Bruins have 18 games remaining, and McAvoy playing his best hockey is going to be a crucial piece of them getting into the playoffs, which is what he’s been doing all year long.
All of his run-ins with injury have yet to slow him down, and it doesn’t look like anything will be able to. Boston faces San Jose tonight at 7 p.m. EST at TD Garden, where they’ll be looking for an extremely important two points.
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