From Dit Clapper to Milt Schmidt, from Johnny Bucyk to Wayne Cashman, and from Ray Bourque to Zdeno Chara, the captain’s C has meant quite a bit to the Boston Bruins organization.
Yet after trading Brad Marchand to Florida late in the second year of his captaincy, the Bruins finished the 2024-25 season without a captain and didn’t name a new one for 2025-26. Last year’s decision came despite a number of seemingly qualified candidates being available — namely, David Pastrnak and Charlie McAvoy.
This year, though, the Bruins will name a captain. Just not yet.
“We are going to announce a captain this year, and we’ll do that before opening night,” general manager Don Sweeney said this week as the Bruins opened training camp. “We’ve spent a lot of time. We understand the legacy of our organization and we want to do it the right way.”
Sweeney credited last year’s leadership group for growing “organically,” a collection that included Pastrnak, McAvoy, Nikita Zadorov, Hampus Lindholm and Elias Lindholm.
Sweeney didn’t tip his hand on who will be the next captain, but it stands to reason it will be either Pastrnak (entering his 13th season with Boston) or McAvoy (entering year 10). Both were first-round draft picks, both have logged heavy minutes, and both have played in locker rooms led by Chara and Patrice Bergeron.
While Pastrnak may be the obvious choice, Michael Felger expressed some concern for that presumptive decision.
“I think it’s gonna be Pastrnak. If it’s not, it’s a huge story. The point is, it’s already a story,” Felger said on Boston Sports Tonight. “The fact that it would have taken them a year-plus to name the longest-tenured, highest-paid, most-decorated player on the team — it took them that long to name him captain? It tells you all you need to know.
“David Pastrnak is no captain. He is not captain material. They’re just doing it so they don’t have to deal with the story anymore.”
The Bruins weren’t the only team without a captain last year, as the Sharks opted to not name a captain in place of Logan Couture after a physical condition forced him into retirement. The Bruins are currently one of six teams that do not have a captain, along with the Ducks, Blue Jackets, Red Wings, Senators and Canucks.
The Bruins have gone without a captain for 18 months, but the vacancy won’t last long, as the team is set to open the regular season on Sept. 29.
David Pastrnak – RW
Pastrnak was drafted by the Bruins with the 25th overall pick in 2014. His 420 goals are fourth-most in the NHL since the 2014-15 season, fewer than only Alex Ovechkin (507), Leon Draisaitl (434) and Auston Matthews (428). Pastrnak ranks seventh in the NHL in points during that same span. He’s played 833 regular-season games and 96 playoff games, all with the Bruins.
He turned 30 last May, he’s signed through 2031, and he’s been an alternate captain since the 2021-22 season.
Charlie McAvoy – D
The 28-year-old McAvoy was selected with the 14th overall pick in the 2016 draft, and he made his NHL debut in the 2017 postseason for the Bruins. He logged heavy minutes as a rookie the following season, averaging over 22 minutes of time on ice, a number that’s only gone up as his career has gone on.
He’s skated in 573 regular-season games and 97 postseason games. Like Pastrnak, McAvoy became an alternate captain in 2021.
McAvoy will be serving a suspension to start the season for his slash on Zach Benson in last year’s playoffs.
Nikita Zadorov – D
If the Bruins go in a surprise direction, they could give the C to the 31-year-old Russian. Zadorov entered the league as an 18-year-old in the 2013-14 season, and he’s played in 804 regular-season games and 64 postseason games for six different teams.
He’s had trouble staying out of the penalty box since signing a six-year contract with the Bruins prior to the 2024-25 season, but he notably stepped into a leadership position in his second season.
