Boston Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy has been named the team’s nominee for the 2026 Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy, as selected by the Boston chapter of the Professional Hockey Writers’ Association (PHWA). The Masterton Trophy is awarded annually to the player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey.
“As Charlie himself would admit, it has been a challenging calendar year for him with painful injuries and intense discomfort after repeatedly getting hit in the mouth area with blasted pucks, sharp elbows and the glass over the boards in one case,” said Joe Haggerty, Chair of the Boston chapter of the PHWA. “It all started with a slapped puck to the face in November that left him with a fractured jaw and numerous lost teeth. Through it all he has endured the pain at times when he couldn’t even chew solid food and did all of this while posting the best season of his NHL career and winning a gold medal for Team USA in Milan Cortina. His season of pushing through it all showed everybody what words like ‘perseverance’ and ‘dedication to hockey’ really mean, and it helped catapult Boston back into the playoff hunt this year.”
McAvoy, 28, appeared in 50 games with the Bruins during the 2024-25 season before sustaining a season-ending shoulder injury in February 2025 at the 4 Nations Face-Off. He returned at the start of the 2025-26 season but suffered a fractured jaw and multiple mouth injuries just 19 games into the season after taking a slapshot to the face on Nov. 15 against the Montreal Canadiens. Despite a difficult rehabilitation process that included significant dietary limitations, McAvoy returned to Boston’s lineup just 26 days later. He went on to represent Team USA at the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026, helping the United States capture a gold medal. Despite sustaining additional minor facial injuries later in the season, the 6-foot-1, 211-pound defenseman has appeared in 67 games with Boston this season, recording 11 goals and career highs in assists (49) and points (60).
McAvoy has been active in the team’s philanthropic efforts in the community this season, including the annual Holiday Toy Shopping and Toy Delivery events, which provide gifts to pediatric patients across the Greater Boston area. He also collaborated with For Bare Feet to design a mismatched pair of socks in honor of World Down Syndrome Day.
McAvoy has played in 571 career NHL games, all with Boston, totaling 71 goals and 289 assists for 360 points with a plus-157 rating. He ranks eighth among franchise defensemen in goals and fifth in assists and points. The Long Beach, New York native was originally selected by Boston in the first round (14th overall) of the 2016 NHL Entry Draft.
The winner of the Masterton Trophy is selected in a poll of all PHWA chapters at the conclusion of the regular season. Recent Bruins nominees include Joonas Korpisalo (2025), Danton Heinen (2024), Nick Foligno (2023), Jake DeBrusk (2022) and Kevan Miller (2021, 2020).
