With Bruins in need of scoring punch, can Matej Blumel realize his potential?

By Conor Ryan Send this article to your social connections.

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In a free-agent class that initially featured legitimate top-six wingers like Nikolaj Ehlers and Brock Boeser, Matej Blumels body of work in the NHL doesnt exactly stand out.

The 25year-old Czech winger has only appeared in 13 games at hockeys highest level, scoring just two goals.

Matej Blumel opens up the scoring for Dallas with his first in the National! #TexasHockey pic.twitter.com/NYVzosBl9o But when the Bruins made the call to sign Blumel to a one-year contract on July 1, Don Sweeney and Bostons top brass werent focusing on his limited production with the Dallas Stars.

Rather, it was his track record of lighting the lamp with the Texas Stars, Dallas AHL affiliate.

Over the past two seasons, Blumel has held court as one of the top goal-scorers in the American Hockey League.

After scoring 31 goals in 72 games with Texas in 2023-24, he followed that up with 39 tallies and 72 total points in 67 games in 2024-25.

For some, Blumel represents the type of talent whose skills are maximized at the AHL level.

For a Bruins team in desperate need of a middle-six scoring spark, Blumel (and fellow AHL standout Alex Steeves) represent a risk worth taking and a player who could be poised for a breakout with more minutes up for grabs with Boston.

He and Alex, both, theyve done what they needed to do at the American Hockey League level and scoring at a high, high level with consistency, Sweeney said.

There are a number of players around the league that have gone through this, and when they got their opportunity, theyve taken advantage of it.

The conversations we have with both Matej and Alex were, If youre going to score at the National Hockey League level, we want you here not anywhere else.

So we provided that opportunity today and theyre excited about it.

And I said, if they take the job of somebody that believes theyre an incumbent, thats what happens in the National Hockey League when a guy gets passed and the internal competition starts.

The Bruins would welcome a scenario where Blumels sharp wrist shot and knack for operating into Grade-A ice translates during training camp and the preseason.

Too bad the Bruins bottom six is way too crowded because Matej Blumel couldve been a fun player to compete for a job pic.twitter.com/gKvfFWQHYV Beyond bringing in a middle-six winger with some scoring pop in Viktor Arvidsson, Bostons offseason moves did little to quiet the concerns that this team will labor offensively when David Pastrnak isnt out on a shift.

Beyond bringing in a middle-six winger with some scoring pop in Viktor Arvidsson , Bostons offseason moves did little to quiet the concerns that this team will labor offensively when David Pastrnak isnt out on a shift.

Allocating cap space toward the likes of Tanner Jeannot, Sean Kuraly, and Mikey Eyssimont will make Boston a hard out on the ice against opponents.

But, it also might lead to some painful readings on the scoreboard if Boston cant complement that heft with the skill needed to consistently win in this league.

Together, Jeannot, Kuraly, and Eyssimont combined for a whopping 484 hits last season.

And just 22 total goals.

Boston is going to need a lot more production beyond the usual suspects like Pastrnak moving forward.

As such, the Bruins unable to reel in big fishes like Mitch Marner, Boeser, or Ehlers opted for a player poised for a greater role in the NHL in Blumel, especially at a cheap price tag ($875,000).

But it wasnt just Sweeney and Co.

who were intrigued by Blumels skill set.

Speaking to Dominik Dubovci at the Czech website Hokej.cz , Blumel said he spoke with David Pastrnak prior to signing with the Bruins, with the superstar forward making his pitch as Blumel weighed several options in free agency.

The only Czech player Ive talked to so far was Pasta, Blumel told Dubovci , per Google Translate.

He left the decision up to me, and Pittsburgh wouldnt be a bad decision either.

But he said they wanted me and that I could help them.

Most of the hope that rests in Blumel developing into a middle-six NHLer revolves around his AHL stat line translating over to the next level if Boston carves out some minutes for him.

But, Blumel generated some looks during the various cups of coffee he earned with Dallas over the last few seasons.

Despite averaging just 9:01 of average ice time per game so far in his NHL career, he generated 4.73 high-danger scoring chances per 60 minutes of 5-on-5 hockey with the Dallas Stars ( per Natural Stat Trick ).

Of the 1,009 NHLers who have logged at least 100 minutes of 5-on-5 hockey over the last three seasons, Blumels 4.73 mark ranks 39th overall ahead of names like Timo Meier, Matthew Tkachuk, and Filip Forsberg.

Of course, its a sizable ask to expect elite results for a player operating with such a small sample size.

And as evidenced by other AHL standouts like Georgii Merkulov, theres no guarantee that operating at nearly a point-per-game pace in the AHL will mean that said player can score 20-plus goals in the NHL ranks.

But, given Bostons shortcomings in the offensive zone, Sweeney and his staff must leave no stone unturned when it comes to adding scoring help even if its an unproven commodity like Blumel.

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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