The phone rang long after most of the hockey world had gone to sleep.

Just before 1 a.m., J.J. Peterka picked up a call that instantly reset his offseason. It wasn’t injury news or negotiation talk—it was a trade. By the end of it, he was no longer a member of the Utah Mammoth. The Boston Bruins had acquired him in a draft-night deal built around a pair of first-round picks.

Peterka didn’t hesitate when describing the moment the news hit him: “Super surprised,” he stated via Zoom from his home in Munich via NHL.com.

It’s the kind of call players remember not just for the destination change, but for the timing—midnight silence broken by a career-altering shift. For Peterka, it also closed a brief and uneven chapter in Utah that never quite matched expectations on either side.

Signed just a year earlier to a five-year, $38.5 million contract, he arrived with the idea he could help anchor a growing offensive group. Instead, his production slipped from the year before in Buffalo, where he posted 27 goals and 68 points. In Utah, he finished with 25 goals and 47 points.

Peterka didn’t hide from the downturn.

“Obviously, I wasn’t really happy with the way I was playing. I think I have way more to give than what I showed. I’m super excited for the opportunity for me in Boston. I think it’s going to be an awesome fit,” he continued.

There were contributing factors, including a reduced role on the power play compared to his time in Buffalo, but he didn’t lean on them as explanation.

“Overall, when it comes down to that, I take full accountability. I wasn’t happy with the way I was playing. I just have way more I can give, so with the Boston, I think the fit’s going to be awesome. I’m going to work super hard in the offseason to get to my game and help Boston win,” said Peterka.

What stands out most now is not just the change of scenery, but the familiarity waiting for him on the other side.

Boston’s coaching staff includes figures with deep ties to his development years in Europe—relationships that stretch back long before the NHL.

“I’ve seen in the past how important a good relationship with the coaches is and if you’re familiar with that kind of stuff. Coming in, having a German coach and having an assistant coach who used to coach me when I was younger is just super exciting overall. I’m super pumped for the opportunity to play in Boston,” said Peterka.

“It was pretty cool and special, talking in German to (Sturm). He just said how excited he is. Obviously me, too. With McIlvane, we go way back. That was kind of always our dream, to be in the NHL together again since he coached me. We always talked and had a really good relationship. That’s going to be awesome.”

That sense of familiarity extends beyond the coaching staff. Peterka arrives in a locker room where he already knows several players, giving him a softer landing than most players experience after a move of this magnitude.

“I think it’s good coming to a team when you know some guys and you’re familiar with the coach with some players I think it’s going to be super easy for me to come in overall,” he said.

The reset now becomes internal: rebuilding confidence, rediscovering the offensive rhythm that once made him a 60-point winger in Buffalo, and proving the Utah season was an outlier rather than a trend.

“When I’m at the best, I can score basically from everywhere and make a lot of plays and take the game over. That’s one thing when I’m really playing at my highest level. That’s one thing I can provide for sure. I think just getting my confidence back is the main focus right now and getting my game back better than where it was,” said Peterka.

He plans to spend most of his summer training in Munich before arriving in Boston in late August, giving himself time to adjust before training camp opens.

He already knows the building well enough to picture the difference.

“What I remember about playing in Boston (was) how hard it was, coming into the building, always packed, fans were super loud all the time. It was a super hard building to play in when you need a win. Super excited to be on the other side of that,” he said. “City-wise, it was gives me some European vibes that way it is with small streets and pretty cool center. I’m a big fan of Boston.”

The hockey fit will be decided later, but one possibility clearly stands out.

“That would be a huge honor. Playing against him was always pretty tough and watching him was awesome. With the opportunity to play with him would be pretty cool,” said Peterka, noting how David Pastrnak became more of a playmaker last season.

For Peterka, the trade is less about disruption than redirection. One season didn’t go as planned—but the opportunity ahead is the kind players don’t usually get twice.

“For me, it’s always been about winning since being a kid. I think it’s the best feeling and the most important thing,” said Peterka. “Just to get the opportunity too play in Boston, an Original Six team, so much history and who took a huge step last year as well. Overall I’m just super exited to join that group and get started.”