McAvoy the next big thing
Confident rookie welcomes spotlight
Charlie McAvoy possesses all the tools to be the next No. 1 defenseman for the Bruins.
He skates well. He has a terrific set of hands. His chubby-cheeked baby face disguises the fact he’s a 6-foot, 210-pound bull who is more than happy to throw his frame around with mal- ice. And he answered any questions about his mental makeup when he stepped off the Boston University campus into the B’s lineup during the Stanley Cup playoffs and played against the Ottawa Senators as if they were Merrimack or Northeastern.
The B’s are in the midst of a youth-infused overhaul, and McAvoy is the face of that movement. After receiving some exposure in the playoffs in April, he’s among the preseason favorites to win the Calder Trophy as the NHL rookie of the year.
The natural inclination for those surrounding McAvoy — still 14 months away from legally being able to drink — is to put the brakes on expectations. B’s general manager Don Sweeney has outlined some of the pitfalls that face any rookie, especially with an 82-game schedule that contains its share of dog days.
Still, you can sense Sweeney and the rest of the Bruins organization feel they have something special in McAvoy. When training camp opened three weeks ago, there was little pretense or lip service given to the idea of McAvoy “making” the team. Barring any disaster, he was going to be in tonight’s lineup for the opener against Nashville. McAvoy didn’t disappoint, and Sweeney believes he’ll be in even better position to succeed this season when the B’s have a full and healthy roster. While mistakes are anticipated, there’s no sense he’s being thrown to the wolves.
“It was a bit of a whirlwind for Charlie last year, and this will be a lot. But he’s not expected to go out and play 26 minutes a night like he was in the playoffs,” said Sweeney, who was down four defensemen in the postseason because of injuries. “He’s going to be surrounded by a group of guys that are highly competitive and will be taking some of that off his plate. If he’s able to, that’s great. But he’s going to go through pockets.
“This is a tough league and a tough position. He’s going to be playing in key situations, and he’ll be playing against top players in the National Hockey League in those key situations. So it’s a learning curve. But we feel comfortable that we’ll be able to surround him and insulate him with the right players. He seems right now that he’s pretty unaffected when he’s on those stages, and we want to maintain that because that’s one of the best assets Charlie has. He’s able to put mistakes behind him.”
McAvoy has a certain swagger, one free of any cockiness. He just seems like he belongs here. B’s teammate Matt Grzelcyk, also his defense partner at BU, saw it right away.
“It’s tough at that age, especially coming into college. You might be playing against some 22-year-olds, and I think he was only 17 when he came in,” Grzelcyk said. “When he came into the (NHL) playoffs and kind of stole the show, I wasn’t too surprised by it because that’s how he is and that’s how much confidence he plays with.”
McAvoy, who has some risk-reward to his game at both ends of the ice, will proceed through trial and error.
“(The Bruins) know, and I know, that there’s no such thing as a perfect game,” McAvoy said. “Naturally, I’m going to be making mistakes, but it’s fine. It’s something that I can learn from and grow from. And one of my short-term goals is to make sure my highs aren’t too high and my lows aren’t too low, just try to be consistent.”
Riding shotgun with the rookie will be the steady, stay-at-home Kevan Miller, who should complement McAvoy well. But he has no rein in the young stallion.
“Absolutely not,” Miller said with a wide grin. “He’s going to learn, and he’s already done a really good job. He’s toed the line really well with that. He’s a smart player, and he knows what he can get away with. And in the little sample size so far, he’s been able to adjust to most plays and figure things out really quick. It’s a testament to him.”
When he came to the Bruins last year, McAvoy was given No. 73, last worn by Michael Ryder. There was a day when a young stud of his ilk would want to exchange that big number, perhaps for one worn by a childhood hero. Not McAvoy. He’ll be wearing it tonight, joining the likes of Patrice Bergeron (37) and Brad Marchand (63) in the Ugly Numbers Club.
And if McAvoy becomes the player the B’s hope, he’ll make that number his and his alone, just as Bergeron and Marchand have done with theirs.