McAvoy Makes Return in Bruins’ First Preseason Game

BOSTON –– When Charlie McAvoy skated onto the ice for warmups, he gave himself a moment to take in TD Garden.

Sunday’s preseason game against the Washington Capitals marked McAvoy’s first time in the Boston Bruins’ lineup since February; his 2024-25 season got cut short at 50 games due to an upper-body injury.

Despite the 5-2 loss, McAvoy appreciated the milestone – and the work he put in to get there.

“Be thankful and grateful to be back out there,” McAvoy said. “It was good to play hockey again. When the preseason gets going, some good and some bad – but it was just good to be back out there again and good to feel good. Body feels really good, and just time to get the timing back and legs back under you.”

McAvoy skated on the first pair with Mason Lohrei and the first power-play unit. The defenseman finished the night with two shots and one block through 21:01 of ice time. Lohrei was excited for the return of his D-partner.

“Obviously, he’s one of the best defensemen in the world,” Lohrei said. “He has such an impact on the game. The guy is incredible and I love playing with him.”

On the other end of the ice, Morgan Geekie opened scoring for the Bruins at 6:17 of the first period. Elias Lindholm poked the puck free in the slot, where it popped over to Geekie for a one-time blast and the 1-0 lead. Geekie – who slotted on the first line with Lindholm and Viktor Arvidsson – picked up right where he left off last season, which was a career year with 57 points (33 goals, 24 assists). Geekie signed a six-year contract extension with the Bruins in June.

“He looked great in camp, he really did. I didn’t really know him. Just by watching him, he is dialed in,” head coach Marco Sturm said of Geekie. “He came in in really good shape, and so far he has been excellent.”

The Capitals quickly responded to tie things 1-1 with a snapshot from Sonny Milano at 6:48. Hendrix Lapierre followed it up with a wrist shot from between the hash marks to make it 2-1 at 11:33, and Milano’s second of the night made it 3-1 at 15:31. Brogdan Trineyev tipped in a shot around the crease for the 4-1 advantage to close the first period.

Patrick Brown pulled the Bruins within two to open the middle frame. The veteran forward streaked down the middle and ripped a shot past Washington netminder Logan Thompson at 3:35 for the 4-2 scoreline. Brown centered the fourth line with Jeffrey Viel and Riley Duran.

“I really liked our fourth line. They were our best line,” Sturm said. “They worked really hard, brought us some energy. They were buzzing around and did exactly what I wanted them to do.”

Washington then sprung up ice on an odd-man rush, which resulted in a tap-in tally from Ryan Chesley at 8:45 and brought the game to its final 5-2 standing; neither team scored in the third period.

“The preseason is all about patience, really, which sometimes I lack. I want it to be perfect, I want to feel amazing, I want to be making the highlight plays. But it’s not easy in the preseason,” McAvoy said. “Trying to take away some positives. It’s always a good chance to watch it and see where you’re at, what you’re missing, what you’re seeing good. I'm sure the video will be a great learning opportunity for not just me but all of us.”

Michael DiPietro and Simon Zajicek split the game in net for Boston. DiPietro had 16 saves on 21 shots through the first 30 minutes of the night, and Zajicek closed out the matchup with six saves.

The Bruins’ next preseason game is on Tuesday against the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden with a 7 p.m. puck drop.