Boston Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy appeared in 50 games this past season for the Original Six club, where he posted seven goals, 16 assists, 23 points, and 89 hits. Unfortunately, his season came to an end in February, as he suffered a serious shoulder injury during the 4 Nations Face-Off.

While McAvoy missed a good chunk of this past season, he still made the NHL Network's latest Top 20 Defensemen Right Now list. The Bruins star blueliner secured the No. 11 spot. 

Although McAvoy made the NHL Network's list again this year, he did drop a bit. Last year, McAvoy was ranked at the No. 7 spot on the NHL Network's top defensemen list. McAvoy's injury and the Bruins' nightmare 2024-25 season likely played roles in him falling down the list.

Now, McAvoy will be looking to stay healthy and help the Bruins get back on track in 2025-26. If he gets his offense back up and is elite defensively, he should move back up on the NHL Network's next top defensemen list. 

Bruins Have Interesting PTO Target To Consider Earlier this week, the <a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/minnesota-wild">Minnesota Wild</a> signed defenseman Jack Johnson to <a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/pittsburgh-penguins/latest-news/ex-penguins-defenseman-signs-pto-with-new-team">a professional tryout (PTO) agreement</a>. Now that we are in the middle of August, we should only continue to see more teams invite remaining unrestricted free agents (UFAs) to their training camps on PTOs.