David Pastrnak is back in Boston, and he says that's where he wants to stay.
After spending most of the summer in Europe and missing the Bruins' first couple captains' practices this week, Pastrnak joined most of his teammates on the ice at Warrior Ice Arena for the first time on Friday.
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The 26-year-old star winger met with reporters afterwards and addressed his contract status for the first time. Pastrnak is entering the final year of his deal, and multiple reports over the summer indicated he may be hesitant to sign an extension.
That doesn't sound like the case based on Pastrnak's comments on Friday, though. Pastrnak said his priority is to remain with the Bruins.
"Yeah, obviously we love it here," Pastrnak said. "This is our home. This is where I've become a man. Spent unbelievable years with [partner Rebecca Rohlsson] and we are really happy here. But obviously my focus moving forward is to be ready for Game 1."
Pastrnak also said he's optimistic a deal will get done.
"Yeah, of course," he said. "This city is where I got the chance to become the player I am, to become the human being I am. Boston, the organization is an unbelievable part of it. I came here as a kid and now I’m a man. I’m extremely happy. A lot of great memories. I’ve said many times I love it here and it’s an honor to wear this jersey."
Pastrnak was asked if he plans to take a wait-and-see approach, whether because of the coaching change or concerns about the future post-Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci or anything else. He indicated that he isn't really focusing on future roster-building decisions.
"It's not really my job to look at what the team's going to be two, three years from now," he said. "I'm a player and I'm just gonna try my best to help the team win. I'm here to do my job. That's kind of what I'm thinking about and focusing on."
General manager Don Sweeney and the Bruins' front office have also said on multiple occasions that they want to keep Pastrnak in Boston for a long time, and that they have made that clear to him and his agent.
Assuming everyone is telling the truth, hammering out an extension shouldn't be too painstaking a process whenever the two sides sit down in person. The Bruins gave Pastrnak his space over the summer -- something Pastrnak said was good for him after dealing with major disruptions the last two offseasons -- but those discussions could now happen in earnest any day now with him back in town.
It wouldn't be surprising if this ultimately follows the same path as Charlie McAvoy's extension last year, both in terms of timing and terms. McAvoy signed an eight-year, $76 million extension ($9.5 million average annual value) just before the start of the regular season, and Pastrnak could justifiably seek pretty much an identical deal.
Even if a deal doesn't get done by opening night, neither side has closed the door on continuing discussions into the season.
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