{"id":451680,"date":"2026-02-08T23:32:16","date_gmt":"2026-02-08T23:32:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/451680\/"},"modified":"2026-02-08T23:32:16","modified_gmt":"2026-02-08T23:32:16","slug":"charlie-mcavoys-olympic-diary-on-the-opening-ceremony-his-jaw-and-yes-his-tweet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/451680\/","title":{"rendered":"Charlie McAvoy\u2019s Olympic diary: On the opening ceremony, his jaw and, yes, his tweet"},"content":{"rendered":"

Throughout the Winter Olympics, Boston Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy will give readers of\u00a0\u00a0The Athletic\u00a0an inside look at Team USA.\u00a0<\/p>\n

At 28, McAvoy, a former Boston University standout and three-time gold medalist in international tournaments, is in his ninth full NHL season. On Sunday, he was named one of Auston Matthews\u2019 two alternate captains at the Olympics, with Matthew Tkachuk being the other.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s his first diary entry, edited for clarity and length, as told to\u00a0senior\u00a0writer Michael Russo.<\/p>\n

MILAN \u2013 It\u2019s been a blast so far in Milan, and I\u2019m so glad I came early.<\/p>\n

Landed a few days ago and me and Zach Werenski, Jake Oettinger and Sway (Jeremy Swayman) got fitted with our Ralph Lauren outfits and then got to be part of the opening ceremony.<\/p>\n

We went back and forth for a little. But once I saw that we were done on the 4th and the ceremonies were on the 6th, I knew there was a chance that maybe we\u2019d be able to come over here. So everybody with USA Hockey, the USOPC, everybody, they went through and jumped through a lot of hurdles for us to be able to get over here and have the chance to walk through. And after getting that experience, it was absolutely incredible. For me, it felt like once in a lifetime, to be there and walk and see thousands of people cheering us on and be with the other athletes and everybody from Team USA. It truly was one of the most special things I\u2019ve been a part of.<\/p>\n

And once you get to meet so many different athletes, you want to go to events and root them on. So we went last night to the figure skating, and it was incredible.<\/p>\n

The village is really cool. It honestly feels like being back in college again, really, you know, it\u2019s dorm rooms, it\u2019s small, there\u2019s a dining hall, some rec spaces, athletes everywhere. So that\u2019s kind of like your students. And it\u2019s always busy. Everybody\u2019s just coming and going, everybody\u2019s on their own schedule. So, it just feels like I\u2019m back at BU a little bit.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s really sweet is I\u2019m by myself. Don\u2019t know how that happened. Actually, like half the guys are alone, and then the other half have roommates. So I\u2019m one of the single ones. I don\u2019t know how much time I\u2019ll spend in my room anyway. I think we\u2019re gonna be spending a lot of time together, this group.<\/p>\n

pic.twitter.com\/e4WUZ18YnE<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Charlie McAvoy (@CMcAvoy44) February 7, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

As you can tell, I\u2019m not comfortable after being hit in the jaw (by Florida\u2019s Sandis Vilmanis) the other night. I\u2019m in pain. I\u2019m having trouble chewing. My face is swollen again. Back to square one, it feels like.<\/p>\n

I got to a place where I felt really comfortable after breaking my jaw earlier this season. I kept the fishbowl on just as a precaution. And the idea was to try and take it off here. I could have taken it off before, but the idea was you\u2019d really, really regret it if I took it off beforehand and something bad happened. So I kept it on. I had gotten used to it. Then I get hit in the fashion in which I got hit. And it sucks, because it\u2019s just really, it\u2019s really painful. Honestly, it feels like it did when I first broke it. I\u2019ve had a lot of that pain come back. So it\u2019s just frustrating that this is kind of something I have to go through again, but I can play in the bubble, and I\u2019ve done it for a while now, and it\u2019ll just be about managing the pain.<\/p>\n

I know a lot of attention has been given to my tweet of the play. I didn\u2019t say anything (about him not getting suspended). I feel like a lot of people have a strong opinion on it that I share. So it is what it is. These things are not up to me, unfortunately. And we just have to have trust in the system.<\/p>\n

It didn\u2019t occur to me until someone brought it up that we play Latvia in the first game, and I\u2019ll play him Thursday. It doesn\u2019t matter to me. I just want to beat Latvia. I don\u2019t know him. I\u2019m not going to be looking for retribution. Like, whatever happened in the NHL can stay in the NHL, and we\u2019ll handle that whenever we get there. But this is about USA versus Latvia and us getting off to a really good start.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s just an honor to be here. I mean, it\u2019s incredible. You get that taste in 4 Nations, you know, the speed, the skill, just how impressive the practices even are. Getting a chance to play with these guys the way everybody sees the game and thinks the game and performs, it\u2019s just unique, and it\u2019s really special to be a part of. Practice was great today. We\u2019ve waited a long time to get to the Olympics, and now it feels like it has officially started.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m looking forward to just getting back to the village with these guys. It\u2019ll be the first night that we have together to spend some time and catching up with a lot of guys that I haven\u2019t seen in a while. This group will be spending a lot of time together. It\u2019s a special group, and we just hope we can make our country proud and come home with gold.<\/p>\n