Breakout Candidate: Matthew Poitras, C

Poitras, a second-round pick in 2022, got off to a strong start in 2023-24 (five goals, 15 points in 33 games) before a shoulder injury which required surgery ended his year that January. His 2024-25 season was not much better, as he scored just one goal in the same 33 games and spent a good portion of the year at AHL Providence. Why you ask then is he a breakout candidate. Boston lacks depth in the top six, and if either Viktor Arvidsson or Casey Mittelstadt don’t produce, Poitras could get a shot at playing with more talented forwards.

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Buy Low Candidate: Hampus Lindholm, D

Lindholm saw his production crater again last season; this time, an injury the culprit, as he played only 17 games before knee surgery took him out for the rest of the season. After potting 10 goals and 43 assists his first year in Boston in 2021-22, Lindholm saw his output cut in half the following year. If he can stay healthy, paired with Charlie McAvoy and on the second power play point, 30+ points should be a reasonable ceiling.

Riser: Mason Lohrei, D

McAvoy and Lindholm are the top-two blueliners but Lohrei showed he can help fill the breach offensively while they were sidelined. He ranked second of the team with 16 power-play points and totaled 33 points, aided by the absence of McAvoy and Lindholm. Lohrei could receive some top unit PP TOI but needs work on his stamina after fading the second half of the year.

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Faller: Morgan Geekie, C/LW/RW

Geekie had a career-best season but a look behind the numbers reveals some concerns. His 22 per cent shooting percentage was second in the league amongst players with at least 11 goals, just behind Brayden Point’s 22.2 per cent. Some regression to the mean must be expected. Geekie should offset some of that scoring decline with a rise in assists skating next to Pastrnak but expecting 33 markers may be a stretch.

All stats courtesy of naturalstattrick.com, moneypuck.com, hockeyviz.com, allthreezones.com, hockey-reference.com, eliteprospects.com unless otherwise noted.