Matthew Poitras’ Road-Trip Poise Should Solidify Bruins Roster Spot

Small sample sizes are tough to parse because anything can happen during a season. Yet, you’re not afforded the time to wait. And Matthew Poitras’ performance during the Bruins’ four-game road trip proved he’s worthy of sticking around in Boston.

After Tuesday’s win over the Chicago Blackhawks at United Center, the Black and Gold have three games left to decide if they want to send Poitras back down to the OHL or jumpstart his entry-level contract. There’s certainly a case to be made that a 19-year-old needs more seasoning, and there’s concern if the 2022 second-round pick can handle the grind of an 82-game NHL season.

But in the small sample size of six games, he’s proven he can be a difference-maker for Boston.

When the lights shined bright on Connor Bedard, it was Poitras who helped the Bruins get the two wins over Chicago in national TV games. Yes, the Blackhawks are in the middle of a rebuild, and Boston hasn’t looked perfect in its 6-0-0 start, but Poitras easily could have been a passenger to Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak.

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However, he’s the one who earned his first career point on opening night. He’s the one who scored his first career goal against the Anaheim Ducks when Boston didn’t play sharply on the second night of a back-to-back. And it was the center who showed his breakaway speed on a goal that helped seal Tuesday’s win.

“I felt like I just got better and better as (the road trip) went on,” Poitras told reporters, per Eric Russo of BostonBruins.com. “That’s a good sign. It makes me feel better on the ice and shift by shift. Confidence level is pretty high … just getting used to the system, more comfortable game in and game out.

“As I jell into that, it makes everything a little more simpler knowing where people are and being able to come up the ice, and once we get into the O-zone, I can use my hockey IQ and try to make some plays.”

How players respond is what makes the difference between the pros and the juniors, and the higher-ups likely will want to see how Poitras responds after a road trip when the Bruins return home to face the Ducks. Boston also has been fortunate to have a relatively easy schedule to start out before it takes on the Detroit Red Wings and Florida Panthers.

The Florida matchup will be Poitras’ ninth game, and the Bruins won’t be afforded enough opportunities to see how the center performs against tougher competition. A lot of it will be projection and trust, but Poitras has said all the right things, and he’s appeared to endear himself to the locker room.

“It brings energy to the bench,” Bruins coach Jim Montgomery said. “And he has such good energy, same thing with (Johnny) Beecher. Young guys being in the league, they’re kind of bright-eyed, bushy-tailed and they bring a positive innocence with them.”

Beecher has been a solid fourth-line center and effective on a stout penalty kill. It seems like he’s solidified his spot. And if there’s one aspect Poitras can improve on, it’s the power play. If he can help inject more consistency into that area for the team, it would go a really long way for the rest of the season.

Montgomery and Marchand stressed they would like to have more consistency when it comes to lines and pairings. Poitras continues to build chemistry with Jake DeBrusk and Morgan Geekie, and Boston’s ceiling could raise with the Marchand, Pastrnak and Pavel Zacha line.

Poitras provides a lot of potential for Boston’s lineup with his willingness to get physical on defense and his nifty moves on the boards. It’s hard to determine what a player will be based on a ninth of the regular season, but Poitras proved his worth to at least be given a chance to show what he can be for the Bruins.