Boston Bruins sign forward Matthew Poitras to entry-level contract

The Boston Bruins have signed forward prospect Matthew Poitras to a three-year, entry-level contract, the club announced Friday afternoon.

Poitras, 19, scored 16 goals and 95 points in 63 games with the Ontario Hockey League’s Guelph Storm during the 2022–23 regular season. He added two goals and six points in six 2023 playoff contests with the team.

The Bruins originally selected Poitras in the second round (No. 54 overall) of the 2022 NHL Draft. His entry-level contract with the team will take effect in the 2023–24 season.

Poitras was the Bruins’ first selection in the 2022 NHL Draft. They traded their first-round pick to the Anaheim Ducks as part of the deal that brought Hampus Lindholm to Boston.

With Poitras now under contract, the Bruins still have the other five members of their 2022 NHL Draft class to sign before their exclusive draft rights expire. Cole Spicer, Dans Locmelis, Frederic Brunet, Reid Dyck, and Jackson Edward will all remain on the Bruins’ reserve list until at least June 1, 2024.

Poitras joins a Bruins prospect pool that has been largely ransacked in recent years in attempts to maximize the NHL club’s playoff chances. Beyond Poitras, the Bruins’ crop of prospects includes Fabian Lysell, Mason Lohrei, Jakub Lauko, and Johnny Beecher.

The Bruins finished the 2022–23 regular season atop the National Hockey League standings with a record-breaking 135 points and a 65–12–5 mark through 82 games. But after capturing the Presidents’ Trophy as the league’s top team, the Bruins fell to the Florida Panthers in the first round of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs.