Charlie McAvoy‘s last competitive hockey game came on Feb. 15, a 3-1 win for the U.S. over Canada in the 4 Nations Face-Off round robin.
The Boston Bruins defenceman’s season has been a whirlwind ever since as a shoulder injury sent him to the hospital with an infection, then prevented him from returning to his NHL club.
“Mentally, emotionally, physically, I’ve gone through so much because of that damn experience. It cost me my season. It cost me my sanity in a lot of ways,” McAvoy said Thursday, two days after the Bruins season concluded.
The 27-year-old from Long Beach, N.Y., had starred for the Americans in that initial win over Canada, but quickly entered the tournament spotlight for different reasons amid reports that the Bruins were “unhappy” with how Team USA handled his injury.
Meanwhile, McAvoy underwent a procedure to treat the infection that stemmed from his shoulder injury.
“None of this has been easy and I get emotional when I talk about it,” he said. “Look, it was an incredible experience, waited my whole life to be a part of something like that, but the way that it ended and the aftermath of it and what I had to to go through, it cost me a lot more than I was willing to give and that’s unfortunate.
“But it’s over now, and now I can finally put it to bed and after we talk about it. I don’t want to talk about it ever again, because it cost me a lot.”
McAvoy said he has been skating during the spring with the goal of a return to the Bruins, but in the end, he could not make it back into game action.
With Boston set to finish last in the Eastern Conference, it’s the first time in McAvoy’s nine-year career that he will not take part in the playoffs.
“Not a great year, really by any stretch,” McAvoy said. “There were certainly some pockets of some good memories, I guess? But overall, really a year to forget with an unfortunate ending on my side.”
McAvoy finished his season with seven goals and 16 assists in 50 games played, the lowest total of his career. For the first time since 2019, he will likely finish outside of the top 20 in Norris Trophy voting.
Meanwhile, the Bruins waved the white flag at the trade deadline, dealing captain Brad Marchand to the Florida Panthers and McAvoy’s longtime defence partner Brandon Carlo to the Toronto Maple Leafs.
“It’s disheartening in every way. You’re watching your friends, your teammates struggle. You’re trying to be there to help with that. You can’t. So many things this year were just unfortunate. So there’s frustration. There’s certainly motivation to never be here again. To find ways for us to improve this culture. To get back to what it looks like because this isn’t a good place to be right now,” he said.
McAvoy added that he is not facing any restrictions in terms of training as the Bruins’ off-season begins.
