Matthew Poitras’ NHL aspirations ring a bell with Milan Lucic
The odds haven’t been in Matthew Poitras’s favor since the fresh-faced center first stepped onto the ice at Warrior Ice Arena Sept. 21.
The 2022 second-round pick’s playmaking poise was evident after a standout 2022-23 campaign in which he dished out 79 assists in 63 games with the OHL’s Guelph Storm.
But after just two seasons of junior hockey, the prospect of the 19-year-old Poitras cracking the Bruins’ roster felt like an improbable scenario just a few weeks ago.
But it’s far from impossible, as Milan Lucic can attest.
Lucic’s bruising style stands in contrast to Poitras’s ability to evade punishment on the boards and orchestrate Grade A chances with slick feeds.
But the 35-year-old veteran knows what the promising prospect is going through.
“It reminds me of when I was a 19-year-old and no one’s really saying anything to you,” Lucic said of his training camp experience in 2007. “But you keep getting put in the lineup, and that’s a good thing when you’re at that age, so good on him for his efforts so far.”
Much like Poitras, Lucic was as an intriguing blue-chip forward in the Bruins’ pipeline, but one that wasn’t viewed as ready for prime time in the 2007 season.
The expectation was that Lucic was going to return to the Vancouver Giants and help his WHL squad defend its Memorial Cup title. But with each preseason game, as Lucic belted opponents and wreaked havoc near the crease, his odds of sticking in the NHL improved.
“They just kept playing me,” Lucic said. “So I was like, ‘OK, I guess that must be a good thing.’ So I just keep going out there and showing them what I can do.
“I think the two of us have completely different skill sets. So for me, I just continued to be physical and showed that I could hang with the big boys and all that type of stuff.”
So far, Poitras has done little to make coach Jim Montgomery and the Bruins brass think about pulling the plug on his preseason run.
In four preseason games, Poitras has two goals and two assists. He has won 53.5 percent of his faceoffs while logging more than 16 minutes of ice time per game.
His 5-foot-11-inch, 180-pound frame raises questions about his ability to withstand the punishment of an 82-game gauntlet in the NHL. But his playmaking and willingness to skate into Grade-A ice had Bruins captain Brad Marchand drawing comparisons to Maple Leafs All-Star forward Mitch Marner.
Poitras may not be a point-per-game spark plug like Marner, but he has made a compelling case to stick around.
Montgomery noted last week that he’d like to have the roster largely settled before the final preseason game Thursday against the Rangers. Decisions will be coming soon for promising youngsters like Poitras, Johnny Beecher, and Mason Lohrei.
It’d be a sizable achievement if Poitras manages to take the ice when the Bruins begin their centennial season Oct. 11.
But because of the transfer agreement between the NHL and CHL, teenagers like Poitras (and Lucic in 2007) have limited options.
He is not eligible to play in AHL Providence this season. He either will beat the odds and stick with the Bruins or log another season with Guelph.
The Bruins can keep Poitras for up to nine regular-season games without burning the first year of his entry-level contract. At that point, they would have to decide whether to keep him and begin his three-year deal or send him back.
The onus would fall on Poitras to capitalize on that nine-game trial and prove that he has the means of surviving a full year with Boston.
”He’s got to play to his strengths, and the main thing in this league is doing it on a night-to-night basis,” Lucic said. “Because if you’re doing it one out of five nights, then that’s not good enough.”
Lucic ultimately logged 77 games with the Bruins in 2007-08, securing his spot in the bottom-six group of forwards with a bombastic opening road trip.
“I had a really great road trip,” said Lucic, “and especially that game in LA where I had a Gordie Howe hat trick four games in. I think that kept me here for the rest of the year.”
Poitras may not have to drop the gloves to validate his spot, but if he is to follow in Lucic’s footsteps and jump from juniors to the Bruins, he’ll need to make the most of whatever additional time is afforded him.
”I think I’ve played pretty well and I’ve done everything I can,” Poitras said. “So, just think I made it pretty difficult on them.”
