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Four games in Providence was more than enough for Bruins general manager Don Sweeney to believe that the 19-year-old Charlie McAvoy is ready to make the jump to the National Hockey League. Oh, and two injuries to key members of his top-four defense corps in Brandon Carlo and Torey Krug.
Donning No. 73, it was just moments before the club took the ice for Monday’s practice that the team confirmed that McAvoy, drafted by the Bruins with the 14th overall last summer, has indeed signed his three-year, entry-level deal with the club and will join the B’s for the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
On Providence on an amateur tryout agreement, McAvoy has two assists and a plus-three rating in four games with the P-Bruins of the this season. And he actually wasn’t even on the ice for a goal against during his time with the P-Bruins, which came largely spent with Tommy Cross. McAvoy was selected to the Hockey East First All-Star Team in his sophomore season with the Boston University Terriers in 2016-17, posting five goals and 21 assists for 26 points with 51 penalty minutes and a plus-nine rating. He also appeared in 37 games as a freshman in 2015-16, earning Hockey East All-Rookie Team honors after tallying three goals and 22 assists for 25 points with 56 penalty minutes and a plus-10 rating. McAvoy led all Terrier defenseman in scoring both seasons.
In a practice that was spent with just about every line and combination possible, McAvoy’s first and most common partner was the veteran John-Michael Liles. It’s a possible landing spot for his first NHL game, which will come Wednesday’s against the Sens, too, but Cassidy is leaving all doors open.
“Charlie’s gonna play on the right side if he gets into the lineup,… Cassidy confirmed following today’s penultimate skate before Game 1. “There’s a chance tomorrow I might throw him up with [Zdeno Chara], or a Kevan Miller that’s played left. I think Charlie, to have a more veteran guy, will help.…
If McAvoy remains with Liles, it will mean that the B’s top pairing will be Chara and Adam McQuaid, while the Miller defensemen, Colin and Kevan, will reunite as the club’s middle pairing.
But McAvoy’s debut doesn’t come without a bummer for the Bruins, as it means that both Carlo and Krug will be unavailable for the first game of the B’s first playoff series since 2014.
“Torey will be unlikely to play, to start the series for sure,… Sweeney said when asked if Krug, who left Thursday’s game with a lower-body injury and was seen leaving the Garden on crutches, would be available for this series. “And Brandon definitely won’t play in Game 1.…
Carlo, by the way, was injured when he went face first into the boards on an unpenalized boarding from Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin in the regular season finale last Saturday at TD Garden.
Sweeney also noted that he ‘doesn’t have an answer’ for when they could be ready.
Ty Anderson is the Boston Bruins beat writer for WEEI.com, and has been covering the National Hockey League for HockeyBuzz.com since 2010. He can be heard on the Saturday Skate program on 93.7 WEEI (Boston), can also be found in the New England Hockey Journal magazine, and has been part of the Boston Chapter of the PHWA since 2013. Contact him on Twitter or send him an email at Ty.AndersonHB[at]gmail.com.