Charlie McAvoy

Charles Patrick McAvoy Jr. (born December 21, 1997) is an American professional ice hockey defenseman and alternate captain for the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected 14th overall in the 2016 NHL entry draft by the Bruins and is widely regarded as one of the best defensemen in the NHL.

Early life

McAvoy was born on December 21, 1997, in Long Beach, New York. His father, Charles McAvoy Sr., was the fourth-generation owner of Charles A. McAvoy Plumbing & Heating in Long Beach, while his mother Jennifer worked as an elementary school teacher in Bethpage, New York. Although he grew up surrounded by New York Islanders fans, McAvoy and his family were supporters of the New York Rangers of the National Hockey League (NHL), as several members of the Rangers were customers at the family plumbing company.

Playing career

Junior and collegiate career

McAvoy played in the 2010 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with the New York Rangers minor ice hockey team. In August 2013, McAvoy committed to play college hockey at Boston University.

McAvoy played for the USA Hockey National Team Development Program in the United States Hockey League for two seasons. During the 2015–16 NCAA men's ice hockey season, BU coach David Quinn paired McAvoy with star BU defenseman and future fellow NHL player Matt Grzelcyk, already selected as a third round 2012 NHL entry draft pick by the Boston Bruins. McAvoy was part of the gold medal-winning team at the 2015 IIHF World U18 Championships. He was also a member of the bronze medal-winning U-20 team at the 2016 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships.

Leading up to the 2016 NHL entry draft, McAvoy was highly regarded by scouts and was considered one of the top four defensemen available.

Boston Bruins

2017–18 season

On March 29, 2017, McAvoy ended his college hockey career by signing for an amateur try-out with the Providence Bruins, the Bruins' AHL affiliate. On April 10, McAvoy signed an entry-level NHL contract.

McAvoy's first game was on April 12, 2017, a 2–1 playoff victory over the Ottawa Senators. Despite having no prior NHL experience, he logged the second most ice time on the team. At a time when four of their top six defenders were injured, McAvoy notched three assists in six games. Following the Bruins' loss to the Ottawa Senators in the first round of the playoffs, by mid-June 2017 Bruins legend and Hall of Fame defenseman Bobby Orr spoke highly of McAvoy's level of talent and work ethic towards succeeding in NHL-level play.

McAvoy made his NHL regular season debut on October 5, 2017, the Bruins season opener against the Nashville Predators. McAvoy got his first regular season points in the game, a goal and an assist in a 4–3 win.

On December 18, 2017, McAvoy scored a Gordie Howe hat trick, which is an unofficial stat where a player gets a goal, an assist, and a fight in one game, against the Columbus Blue Jackets. The Bruins went on to win the game, 7–2.

Shortly after New Years' 2018, McAvoy was operated on for symptoms of what was diagnosed as supraventricular tachycardia, evidenced by an episode of heart arrhythmia following the Bruins' November 26, 2017 home game against the Edmonton Oilers. He was expected to take two weeks to fully recover from the ablative procedure used to treat the condition. By January 29, McAvoy had resumed practicing at the Warrior Ice Arena, only one week (January 22) after completing the atrial ablation procedure. By February 1, McAvoy had resumed full participation with his teammates in Bruins team practice sessions at the Warrior facility. McAvoy returned to NHL play on February 3, 2018, skating some 18:51 of ice time during a 4-1 Bruins home ice win against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

During the first game of a six-game homestand at the TD Garden, on February 27, 2018 McAvoy scored the winning overtime goal against the Carolina Hurricanes in a 4–3 home ice win, as the youngest Bruins defenseman to ever achieve the feat.
On March 31, 2018, prior to a game against the Florida Panthers, McAvoy was the recipient of the 2017/18 NESN 7th Player Award. Following the Bruins defeat in the second round of the 2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, McAvoy was named to the senior United States roster to compete at the 2018 IIHF World Championship. At the conclusion of the 2017–18 NHL season McAvoy made the NHL All-Rookie team while finishing 5th overall in voting for the Calder Memorial Trophy for rookie of the year.

2018–19 season

The following season, after playing in seven games, McAvoy was taken out of the Bruins lineup due to suffering a concussion on October 18 in a game against the Edmonton Oilers. He was officially placed on the Bruins injured reserve on October 30, and was activated off injured reserve on December 6, after missing 20 games. In his second game back, McAvoy left a game between the Bruins and Toronto Maple Leafs early after a late hit from Leafs forward Zach Hyman, but did not suffer any apparent injury. Hyman later received a two-game suspension for the hit. On May 7, 2019, McAvoy was suspended one playoff game for an illegal check to the head of Columbus Blue Jackets right winger Josh Anderson during game 6 of the second round. As a result of the suspension, he missed game 1 of the Eastern Conference final against the Carolina Hurricanes. McAvoy's sophomore season would end in heartbreak as the Bruins would fall to the St. Louis Blues in Game 7 of the 2019 Stanley Cup Finals. McAvoy recorded eight points in the playoff run.

2019–20 season

On September 15, 2019, as a restricted free agent, McAvoy signed a three-year, $14.7 million contract with the Bruins.

McAvoy was expected to take a big step forward in his production starting in the 2019–20 season, playing alongside NHL legend and Bruins captain Zdeno Chára. Unfortunately, this wasn't the case for McAvoy, who struggled when it came to his offensive numbers. He would only have 13 assists by the end of the calendar year, far from his projected total. It wouldn't be until February 5, 2020, that McAvoy would score his first goal of the season, an overtime winner against the Chicago Blackhawks. The NHL suspended the season in early March due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and later announced that the season was cancelled altogether, finishing McAvoy's season with five goals and 27 assists. In the 2020 Stanley Cup playoffs, playing in a bubble due to the pandemic, McAvoy recorded one goal and three assists, as the Bruins fell in five games in the second round to the Lightning. Although his offensive numbers were seen as low, he took a huge step defensively, and finished 10th in Norris Trophy voting, awarded to the league's best defensemen.

2020–21 season

In the 2020 offseason, both Chara and Torey Krug, important parts of the Bruins defense corps, left in the free agency. As a result, McAvoy was seen as a top defenseman on the Bruins roster. Defensively, McAvoy once played up to expectations, this time finishing fifth in Norris Trophy voting. Offensively, he stayed at the same level as the previous season, with five goals and 25 assists, but this was seen as expected due the pandemic shortened season starting in mid-January rather than late-October. In the playoffs, McAvoy elevated his game. McAvoy scored an assist per game, with 11 assists in 11 games, adding a goal, which included a three assist performance in Game 5 of the second round against the New York Islanders. McAvoy was also the Bruins leader in time-on-ice during their playoff run, which ended in the second round to the Islanders.

2021–22 season

Once again set to be a restricted free agent, on October 15, 2021, McAvoy signed an eight-year, $76 million contract extension with the Bruins. At the time, it was the biggest contract in Bruins history.

In 2021–22, McAvoy finally took the step forward on offense that the Bruins and their fans were hoping he would. McAvoy scored career highs in both goals and assists, with 10 and 46, respectively. In addition to his offensive numbers, McAvoy continued to be a steady presence on the Bruins blue line, finishing top-5 in Norris voting for the second straight year, and top-10 for the third straight year. It was his best showing, finishing fourth in voting. In seven playoff games, McAvoy kept up his offensive stats with five assists, but the Bruins would fall in seven games to the Hurricanes.

2022–23 season

On June 3, 2022, the Bruins announced that McAvoy underwent shoulder surgery and would miss six months, sidelining him for the beginning of the 2022–23 season. McAvoy would make his season debut on November 10, 2022, and scored a goal in the game. After that, it was smooth sailing for McAvoy and the Bruins, who would set the NHL single-season records with 65 wins and 135 points. Unfortunately, this would not continue into the playoffs, as the Bruins would be upset by the Florida Panthers in seven games in the opening round of the 2023 Stanley Cup playoffs. McAvoy would have five assists in the series. In total, he had seven goals and 45 assists in the regular season.

2023–24 season

On October 30, 2023, McAvoy delivered an illegal check to the head on Florida Panthers defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson, who was injured on the play. McAvoy received a match penalty, and was suspended for four games.

2024-25

McAvoy once again entered the season as the Bruins number 1 defensemen. Although the Bruins struggled throughout the season, McAvoy remained an anchor on the blue line, and was solid offensively as well. In the Bruins Centennial Game on December 1, 2024, McAvoy scored two goals to help the Bruins beat the Montreal Canadiens 6-3. From December 14 to December 23, McAvoy had an assist in five straight games. On January 30, 2025, it was announced McAvoy would serve as an alternate captain for Team USA at the upcoming 4 Nations Face-Off. It would be the first time that McAvoy had represented the United States in an international hockey competition since the 2018 World Championships. McAvoy entered the tournament with high hopes, but on February 15, 2020, in a round-robin game against Team Canada, McAvoy suffered an upper-body injury, and was ruled out of the next game against Sweden. On February 18, the Bruins announced in a statement that McAvoy had been admitted to Massachusetts General Hospital to "undergo testing related to an upper-body injury." It was revealed that McAvoy had suffered an infection from the injury, and was week-to-week and subsequently ruled out of the 4 Nations Championship game against Canada. Although McAvoy was never officially ruled out for the season, it was assumed as such, and on April 11, 2025, Bruins interim head coach Joe Sacco confirmed that McAvoy would not return for the season. After the season, it was revealed that McAvoy had suffered a Grade 5 AC joint separation in his shoulder, and was given a pain-killing injection, leading to the infection.

International play

McAvoy has won a gold medal at every junior level. He won at the 2014 World U-17 Hockey Challenge (January tournament), 2015 IIHF World U18 Championship and 2017 World Junior Championship. At the 2017 event, he was named player of the game in the gold-medal match.

McAvoy led all defenseman in scoring at the 2018 IIHF World Championship with nine points, despite only playing in six games due to the Bruins playing in the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs. He won the bronze medal at the tournament.

Personal life

Born to Charles and Jennifer McAvoy, McAvoy grew up in Long Beach, New York, with three sisters. He attended Long Beach High School for one year before moving to Pioneer High School in Ann Arbor, Michigan, when he joined the USA Hockey developmental team.

McAvoy grew up a New York Rangers fan and says he was a big fan of defenseman Brian Leetch, who had concluded his own NHL career by playing for the Bruins in 2006. He has also named former Rangers defenseman Ryan McDonagh as a favorite, and says he tries to emulate Los Angeles Kings defenseman Drew Doughty and Nashville Predators defenseman Tyson Barrie.

McAvoy married his longtime girlfriend, Kiley, in August 2023, who is the daughter of the New York Rangers' head coach Mike Sullivan. The two met at Boston University, and got engaged in July 2022 in Italy.

McAvoy and his wife Kiley welcomed their first child on January 26, 2025.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

Awards and honors

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:McAvoy, Charles
1997 births
Living people
AHCA Division I men's ice hockey All-Americans
American men's ice hockey defensemen
Boston Bruins draft picks
Boston Bruins players
Boston University Terriers men's ice hockey players
Ice hockey players from New York (state)
Long Beach High School (New York) alumni
NHL first-round draft picks
Sportspeople from Long Beach, New York
Providence Bruins players
Ice hockey people from Nassau County, New York
Pioneer High School (Ann Arbor, Michigan) alumni
21st-century American sportsmen
4 Nations Face-Off players