Bruins star picks up where he left off in return from injury

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Bruins star picks up where he left off in return from injury

Matt Vautour · MassLive

Fri, Dec 12, 2025 ·

2 min read

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If not for the bubble, it would have been impossible to tell. From his play to his ice time to his role, Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy showed no signs of the jaw injury that sidelined him for almost a month.

It had been 26 days since a redirected shot against the Canadiens sent McAvoy to injured reserve, needing facial surgery.

But other than the full face mask to protect his still-healing face, he looked like Charlie McAvoy on the ice in the Bruins ’ 6-3 win over the Jets in Winnipeg .

“It’s always tough to sit out, especially when guys are playing great hockey looking like they’re having a lot of fun out there,” McAvoy said. “It’s a joy to be back playing with this group. We had a great game tonight. That’s a big road win.”

“I was ramping up, getting excited, wanting to come back. This team really is special,” he said. “It’s fun to be part of. A lot of fun to come to the rink.”

McAvoy had a goal, an assist and was a plus-4. He played 24:16 over a team-high 33 shifts.

“You get the conditioning back on the fly. The speed, the pace, the best way to get it back is to just play. It was good to get into it tonight. Happy to be part of a win,” he said. “Anytime you take some time off, you’re like, ‘Where am I going to be when I get back?’ To be honest, I felt really good.”

Any plans to ease him back in were erased when Aspirot left with an injury in the first period.

Marco Sturm said he wasn’t surprised to see McAvoy thrive right away.

“He’s a great human being. A great hockey player. We missed him,” he said. “I was not surprised because he’s a good player. But over the past couple of days, he was so happy. He couldn’t wait to get out there. He showed that again today.”

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