Bruins to announce captain ahead of 2026-2027 season opener
BOSTON —
Bruins training camp starts this week as the players return to Boston. The biggest question around the team is whether they’ll have a captain this year. If so, who will it be?
Could Charlie McAvoy or David Pastrnak trade the “A” for a “C” on their sweaters this year?
General manager Don Sweeney got ahead of those questions to open Wednesday’s press conference.
“We are going to announce a captain this year,” he said. “We’ll do that before opening night so nobody has to ask who it is or whatnot. We’ve spent a lot of time, and we understand the legacy of our organization. We want to do it the right way.”
So the B’s will try to build on what they accomplished last season without a true captain: 100 points in their first year under new head coach Marco Sturm and a first-round loss to the Buffalo Sabres. Sweeney said this is a year to test the hockey club’s growth.
“I think the league is built on who’s the next guy to influence and move the needle for your hockey club, and most of that is internal, but we went external with (Will) Borgen and J.J. (Peterka),” he said. “It has to come from everywhere.”
Sweeney also said conversations with Pavel Zacha continue on a new contract or extension. Zacha will be a free agent at the end of this coming season.