The Bruins enter this showdown against the red-hot Lightning — 16-1-1 in their past 18 games — without their top two centers; both Elias Lindholm and Pavel Zacha were injured during a 6-3 win against the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday and are unavailable.
That could be a bit unnerving for Boston, which is five points behind Tampa Bay in the Atlantic Division despite being 8-1-1 in its past 10 games.
Bruins forward Sean Kuraly says Pastrnak can mitigate the absence of those players with how brilliantly he has been playing. Pastrnak leads them and ranks sixth in the NHL with 69 points (22 goals, 47 assists) in 50 games.
Since Jan. 1, he has 25 points (five goals, 20 assists) in 14 games. Kucherov (31 points; nine goals, 22 assists) is the only player with more since the New Year.
Kuraly says he has never seen Pastrnak as engaged as he is right now.
“It’s even more of him, more “Pasta,” more of what he does well,” Kuraly said. “It’s just more often. He’s leading out there, that’s for sure.
“He’s been our heartbeat. He brings it every night, plays hard. When you have a guy with that much talent and skill playing like that, it’s easy to follow.”
Marco Sturm knew how good Pastrnak was before he was hired as Bruins coach on June 4, 2025. He had seen him on TV and coached against him during previous stops as an assistant.
But even Sturm has been surprised by the in-person experience.
“There are so many things in his game and between his ears that we can’t really teach,” Sturm said. “The stuff he does on the ice daily, even how he thinks the game is different. You can see it in his game. He’s a very gifted, talented player.
“The way he plays right now for the month of January, I’m just happy to kind of witness that.”
McAvoy has watched Pastrnak up-close for almost a decade.
The defenseman joined the Bruins for the first time during the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs, leaving at the end of his sophomore season at Boston University. He was 19 and getting his first taste of the NHL during its most tense time of the season. Pastrnak was McAvoy’s roommate on the road.
He was wide-eyed in those early moments, and the awe hasn’t left his voice almost a decade into the adventure they have shared, each since emerging as a foundational member of the organization.
Pastrnak, 29, surpassed 900 points with a three-assist performance against the New York Rangers on Jan. 26. He has 902 points (413 goals, 489 assists) in 806 games.
“I kind of took a step back and admired the brilliance of his career so far, what he’s accomplished, what he is going to accomplish, not even being 30 yet,” McAvoy said. “He’s got a chance to do something really special with where he is at.”