The Boston Bruins have signed their final remaining restricted free agent ahead of training camp. According to a team announcement, the Bruins signed forward Matthew Poitras to a one-year, two-way contract for the 2026-27 season.
The one-year deal will pay Poitras $850K at the NHL level.
Poitras, 22, has had an up-and-down career with the Bruins thus far. Boston selected him with the 54th overall pick of the 2022 NHL Draft, and he spent an additional season with the OHL’s Guelph Storm before transitioning to the professional ranks for the 2023-24 season.
Surprisingly, Poitras cracked the Bruins’ opening-night roster out of training camp the following season. He paused in the winter to play for Team Canada at the U20 IIHF World Junior Championship, scoring two goals and four points in five tournament games.
In the NHL, Poitras finished his rookie season with five goals and 15 points in 33 games with a +4 rating. Outside of leaving for the World Junior Championship, Poitras had his season cut short due to shoulder surgery.
Poitras, recovering from offseason surgery, made Boston’s team for the 2024-25 campaign. Unfortunately, he didn’t get off to a great start, finishing with one goal and 11 points in 33 games with a -5 rating.
Believing he needed a reset, the Bruins reassigned Poitras to the AHL’s Providence Bruins after only 14 games. He had a strong season in the AHL, registering 17 goals and 41 points in 40 games with a +4 rating.
Unlike his first two seasons, Poitras began the 2025-26 season with AHL Providence. He had another strong showing, though he didn’t reach the point-per-game mark he enjoyed the previous year.
He finished the season with 13 goals and 44 points in 69 games with a +1 rating. In January, the Bruins recalled Poitras to the NHL for a three-game stint after Boston ran into some injury trouble.
Similar to last season, it will be hard for Poitras to crack the Bruins’ opening night roster for the 2026-27 campaign. Boston added winger JJ Peterka over the offseason and is expecting a full season from top prospect James Hagens.
Still, if he impresses at camp, Boston is no stranger to making difficult decisions if they believe Poitras will improve the team.