NHL Reveals Point Projections For David Pastrnak, Bruins’ Key Players
The Bruins are coming off a league record 135-point regular season, and NHL Fantasy released point predictions for the upcoming campaign Thursday for some of Boston’s standouts.
David Pastrnak: 110 points
Pastrnak finished last season second across the league with 61 goals, trailing only Edmonton Oilers star Connor McDavid with 64. He also was tied for third in points with 113, once again trailing McDavid (153) and another Oilers playmaker Leon Draisaitl (128). The 27-year-old right wing hit the 110-point mark last year, but things will look a lot different this season following veteran center Patrice Bergeron’s retirement and David Krejci’s return still undecided.
Brad Marchand: 87 points
Marchand, despite a late start to last season due to offseason hip surgery, still had a great year. The left wing maintained close to a point-per-game average in his 2022-23 campaign with 67 points in 73 games. The NHL Fantasy team believes the veteran winger will see a 20-point increase if the 35-year-old can stay healthy for the entire season.
Charlie McAvoy: 64 points
McAvoy also had a delayed start to last season following offseason shoulder surgery. He still managed to rank 15th among defensemen in points per game with 52 points in 67 contests. The NHL Fantasy team predicts the 25-year-old will see a 12-point increase as he’s expected to play an even bigger role with Bergeron no longer on the team.
Hampus Lindholm: 50 points
The Bruins defenseman recorded career highs across the stat sheet last season. This included shots on goal (158), assists (43, good for a tie for 13th among defensemen), points (53) and power-play points (17). The 29-year-old’s plus/minus rating led the league at plus-49. He surpassed the 50-point mark in this standout season and looks to do the same in his 2023-24 campaign.
Linus Ullmark: 31 wins
Ullmark’s 1.89 goals-against average and .938 save percentage led the league last season, en route to winning the Vezina Trophy. Having made 14 fewer starts than Colorado Avalanche netminder Alexandar Georgiev, the Sweden native tied Georgiev for most wins in the league with 40. Ullmark is projected to secure nine fewer wins next season.
Jeremy Swayman: 26 wins
Swayman helped the Bruins toward a league-record 65 wins, sharing the space between the pipes with Ullmark as well as sharing the 2023 William M. Jennings Trophy honors. The 24-year-old’s future looks bright coming off a 24-win season, and he was awarded a one-year, $3.475 million contract Tuesday after filing for arbitration.