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Analyzing the benefits and drawbacks of the Bruins sending Matt Poitras to the World Juniors

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“This is quite an accomplishment for all young hockey players.”

For the next three weeks, rookie center Matt Poitras of the Boston Bruins will be playing for his country instead of the NHL.

The 19-year-old forward will be competing for Team Canada in the 2024 IIHF World Junior Championship, the Bruins announced on Monday morning.

From December 26, 2023 to January 5, 2024, Gothenburg, Sweden will host the yearly junior competition. Poitras won’t be back with the Bruins until at least January 8, when the team kicks off a four-game road trip in Denver, barring a dramatic departure for Team Canada.

Don Sweeney remarked of Poitras’ assignment, “This is quite an accomplishment for all young hockey players — a chance to represent their country at one of the biggest stages.” The fact that he is now playing in the NHL makes it special. What’s the trade-off, then, is probably the first thought that crosses anyone’s mind?

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“However, there really isn’t anything wrong with him going there to represent that team, lead by example, and hopefully achieve the ultimate goal that all young hockey players get the opportunity to try and achieve.”

After the playmaking pivot scored 95 points (16 goals, 79 assists) in just 63 games with the Ontario Hockey League’s (OHL) Guelph Storm the previous season, Poitras was previously thought to be a lock for a spot on the roster of the two-time defending WJC champions in Canada.

However, Poitras’ impressive Boston preseason and quick ascent to the NHL ranks allowed the teenager to bypass AHL competition and immediately sign with the Bruins this autumn.

This season, Poitras has appeared in 27 games with the Bruins, tallying eight assists and five goals.

Let’s examine the benefits and drawbacks of Boston arranging for Poitras to take a little vacation from NHL play:

PRO: A boost to self-assurance
Jim Montgomery has given Poitras a lot of credit for his ability to hold his own against the more difficult opponents and punishing play that consistently comes up in his first taste of NHL competition.

However, as is the case for any young player developing at the pinnacle of the sport, making it through the NHL ranks is frequently a sobering — and confidence-sapping — exercise.

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Despite spending the most of his career as a mainstay in the top six, Poitras has mostly been moved into a middle-six role with Boston, averaging 14:06 minutes of ice time per game. This season, he has been relegated to the bench at crucial moments in games, particularly when Boston is trying to hold onto a one-goal lead.

Naturally, Montgomery has good intentions when he uses Poitras, and Boston is aware that a talented player who, to be honest, still has a lot to learn at this level of competition shouldn’t be overexerted.

However, Poitras might be in line for a much-needed boost against the kind of competition encountered at the World Juniors following more than two months of grueling matches against experienced NHL players.

Poitras is anticipated to be a key member of Team Canada with Macklin Celebrini, a Boston University Terrier and the anticipated number one overall pick in 2024, given his NHL background and obvious skill.

In the upcoming weeks, Poitras will not only gain from significant playing time (including power-play repetitions) on a prominent international platform, but he should also be able to carve up opposition defenses while taking on under-20 skaters.

Even if Poitras experienced some anticipated setbacks from October to December, a great performance in Sweden might provide him with the jolt he needs to get back to Boston for the second half of the season.

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According to Sweeney, “I think [this] gives him a chance to have a little bit of a reset, go against and play against your peer group,” both psychologically and physically. “Once more, he’s been thrown into high-stakes, high-leverage pressure scenarios at the best level he can play at. He ought to manage that nicely.

We are hopeful that he would lead from the front and teach his new teammates the lessons he learned from what transpired in our locker room. And he’ll return and reintegrate with our group.

CON: A demanding workload
Poitras’ exceptional ability to create plays could help him succeed at the World Juniors. But no matter the level of competition, sixty minutes of hockey still tire you out.

Furthermore, despite Montgomery and company’s careful efforts over the past two weeks to lessen Poitras’ workload with the Bruins, the youngster will have a full schedule while in Sweden.

Poitras is anticipated to participate in seven games throughout the 11-day competition if Team Canada advances to the Gold Medal game.

For a young player who is already scheduled to venture into unknown territory this winter in terms of playing time, it would be a taxing stretch.

Due to load management, Poitras has been sidelined twice in Boston’s previous five games. Montgomery has recommended rest days for the rookie to maintain his legs during the demanding 82-game NHL season.

Poitras has never before participated in over 68 games in a single season. Boston also cannot afford for him to hit a wall in March or April, considering his importance to a Bruins team that still lacks offensive inventiveness and finesse.

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It is true that the league becomes more difficult, and this is his first experience with it. Even if you may want to discuss it with a player, you have to experience it yourself, according to Sweeney.

Thus, he’s done a great job adjusting to the challenging learning curve. Returning to some of the games where he had made a few mistakes but had not lost his conference, he went out and played and made the following play. Although this is something he is experiencing for the first time, he is trying to use what he has learned from each event and should be much better off in the end.

Boston is hopeful that Poitras may find some motivation with Team Canada after a stellar performance in the midst of a demanding NHL season.

However, Fabian Lysell, another blue-chip prospect for the Bruins, serves as a reminder of what may go wrong in the World Juniors. Before joining Team Sweden in the 2023 competition, the 2021 first-round pick started the previous season with 19 points in his first 20 games with Providence.

However, Lysell ran out of steam the rest of the season, scoring only 18 points in his 34 games with Providence after scoring 0 points in his first seven games of the tournament.

Poitras may have better numbers abroad, but Boston needs to be careful to make sure its best rookie isn’t playing on empty.

CON: A defeat in the lower half
Poitras’ contribution to Boston’s middle-six grouping is invaluable, even though his output has recently decreased. This is especially true for the Bruins, who are still deficient in 5v5 offensive output.

Advertisement: With 59 5v5 goals this season, Boston is ranked 21st in the NHL. Poitras, with his skill at passing the puck and deft use of his stick, is a bright spot further down the lineup.

Poitras can improve a portion of the forward corps that typically relies on straight-line forechecking and less ingenuity to create attack when he is pushed down to the bottom-six grouping.

Poitras doesn’t play a lot of minutes on the power play, but it’s encouraging to see him have success when Boston has the man advantage. Poitras ranks 21st in terms of penalties drawn per 60 minutes (2.22) among the 557 NHL players who have played at least 200 minutes of 5v5 ice time this season.