Charlie McAvoy reflects on hospital stay, future of Bruins after roster upheaval

By Conor Ryan A lot has changed since the last time Charlie McAvoy took the ice with his Bruins teammates on Feb.

8.

Despite their shaky postseason odds, Boston was still in the hunt at that juncture on the NHL calendar with an established group featuring the likes of Brad Marchand, Brandon Carlo, and Charlie Coyle all looking to claw the team out of its extended malaise.

And even with the roller coaster that was the first four months of the 2024-25 campaign, McAvoy still had plenty to look forward to during the leagues two-week stoppage with the 27-year-old defenseman expected to play a key role for Team USA in the 4 Nations Face-Off.

Fast-forward seven weeks later and McAvoy summed up both he and his teams situation in short order on Tuesday in California.

I wish a lot of things would have been different here down the stretch, I really do, McAvoy said.

It hasnt been the easiest.

Not only has Bostons roster been uprooted since the last time McAvoy skated in an NHL game, the Bruins blueliner hasnt been cleared himself for game action with McAvoy sidelined for over a month after suffering both a significant AC joint injury and a subsequent infection in his shoulder .

The severity of the infection eventually forced McAvoy to spend several days at Mass.

General Hospital where he received antibiotics and had to undergo an irrigation and debridement procedure.

Not only did his participation in the 4 Nations Face-Off come to an abrupt end, but McAvoys return to the Bruins remains unclear this season.

Beyond the pain of sitting out Team USAs eventual OT loss to Canada in the 4 Nations title game at TD Garden, McAvoy admitted that his stint in the hospital was a trying time.

Charlie McAvoy on being back with the #NHLBruins for practice: "Its been a lot, its tough.

Were out the other side now.

Just happy to be here...I wish a lot of things would have been different here down the stretch, I really do.

It hasnt been the easiest." pic.twitter.com/ijBLeA1ggg It wasnt good.

It was bad, McAvoy told reporters in Anaheim on Tuesday.

It was when I got home that things sort of hit the fan on [that] Monday and that landed me in the hospital and things moved pretty fast after that.

The infection was moving pretty fast after that and it got very serious, very quick.

Another thing that Im just trying to leave in the past, really.

It was scary, it was scary on me, scary on my family, mostly.

I just could not be more grateful for all the people at MGH and all the people that took such amazing care for me at a time when we really needed it.

Those people are the heroes of this story.

They mean the world to me and I truly am grateful for them and how I was taken care of there.

With just nine games left on the regular-season docket and Boston now in the midst of a seven-game losing streak following Wednesdays 6-2 loss to Anaheim, it seems unlikely that the Bruins are pushing McAvoy to return for what stands as a lost season.

But McAvoy did take steps forward this week, joining the team on the West Coast and skating in a non-contact sweater.

Its a positive development for McAvoy, even if the team hes returning to is very different from the one he last played with.

Gone are Marchand, Coyle, Carlo, Trent Frederic, and Justin Brazeau five lineup regulars who are all dealt at the trade deadline as management waved the white flag on a miserable campaign.

It was not fun, McAvoy said of the deadline.

It was a really tough day on a lot of different fronts...theres another aspect to this game that has nothing to do with on the ice and thats the friendships of it and the relationships, and the reality of it is Ive been here for a while now and a lot of my friends are no longer here.

I understand its the business part of it.

I get it.

But it doesnt make it easier to see a lot of your best buddies now be in other spots...its a problem that everybody goes through so its not just me.

But it stings, it does.

But all those guys, you wish nothing but the best for them.

Theyre very easy to cheer for, every one of them, every guy that we lost.

The Bruins have plenty of work to do moving forward when it comes to retooling this roster and building a new core around franchise stalwarts like David Pastrnak and McAvoy.

But even with the growing pains that await, McAvoy stressed that both he and Pastrnak are ready to step up as the next leaders of a Bruins team looking to pen a new chapter in the years ahead.

Moving forward, its probably our most important objective is how we get it back and what were gonna do and how were gonna leave it better than we found it, McAvoy said.

Weve certainly got some work to do on that front.

But its a challenge that youre so fortunate to have because I know both of us know what it means to be a Boston Bruin and know what it looks like and what it feels like to be a part of the teams that are the winning teams, the special teams.

Its right there, weve just got to get it back.

Conor Ryan Conor Ryan is a staff writer covering the Bruins, Celtics, Patriots, and Red Sox for Boston.com, a role he has held since 2023.

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