Matt Poitras's rookie season is over. The Bruins announced Wednesday night that the 19-year-old center underwent surgery on his injured right shoulder and is expected to miss approximately five months.
"Matt has been an important part of our team's success thus far, and he will be missed," general manager Don Sweeney said in a statement. "Our medical staff made the recommendation for Matt to proceed with the surgery rather than continue playing with an unstable shoulder and risking further damage. Everyone involved supported the decision as to do what was best for him at this time. Matt is just starting his Bruins career and is a key part of our future."
"Matthew Poitras underwent a successful right shoulder open stabilization (Latarjet) procedure today, February 7," Bruins medical director Dr. Peter Asnis said. "The surgery was performed by Dr. Thomas Holovacs at Massachusetts General Brigham Hospital. The expected recovery time is approximately five months."
Poitras initially suffered the injury on Jan. 9 in Arizona when he fell awkwardly after a hit. He missed four games, but then returned and played three more. He suffered a setback shortly before the All-Star break, though, and missed the Bruins' final pre-break game in Philadelphia.
Poitras practiced with the team on Sunday and Monday this week, and coach Jim Montgomery expressed optimism that his recovery was trending in the right direction.
However, Poitras then missed Tuesday's morning skate due to a follow-up doctor's appointment. Obviously, the news coming out of that wasn't good, and the decision to have surgery came soon after.
Poitras was one of the feel-good stories of the season for Boston, as he surprised everyone by making the team out of camp thanks to a terrific preseason and training camp.
Poitras had 15 points (5 goals, 10 assists) in 33 games, ranking 10th on the team in points per game. He missed eight games in December and January while playing for Team Canada at the World Junior Championships.
With Poitras out, the Bruins will likely be calling up a forward from Providence ahead of Thursday's game against Vancouver. They will likely continue to roll with Charlie Coyle, Pavel Zacha, Morgan Geekie and Jesper Boqvist as their four centers, although Johnny Beecher and Georgii Merkulov could also be options if they're called up. Trent Frederic has played some center this season as well.
The five-month timetable should give Poitras plenty of time to get back to full strength in time for training camp.
