Bruins’ Charlie McAvoy, Mark Kastelic out for remainder of 2024-25

The Boston Bruins have shut down defenseman Charlie McAvoy and center Mark Kastelic for the remainder of the 2024-25 campaign, interim head coach Joe Sacco confirmed Thursday per Conor Ryan of The Boston Globe.

For McAvoy, the 27-year-old native of Long Beach, N.Y., has been sidelined since suffering a shoulder injury while competing with Team USA at the 4 Nations Face-Off. In all, it marked McAvoy’s second extended absence of the season following a seven-game stretch through late January due to an upper-body ailment. On the season, McAvoy made 50 appearances with the Bruins in which he registered seven goals and 16 assists to rank second in team scoring among defensemen. Along the way, McAvoy led all Boston skaters this season in averaging nearly 24 minutes of ice time per game.

Originally chosen 14th overall by Boston in the 2016 NHL Draft, McAvoy has totaled 504 career contests with the Bruins in which he has notched 60 goals and 240 assists for 300 points. Per PuckPedia, McAvoy is in the third year of an eight-year contract that carries a $9.5-million annual average value.

For Kastelic, the 26-year-old product of Phoenix, Ariz., has been sidelined for the past nine games due to an upper-body injury. Skating in his first season with the Bruins, Kastelic also missed six straight games through early February after suffering an undisclosed injury. In all, through 61 outings with the Bruins this season, Kastelic tallied five goals and nine assists for 14 points coupled with a minus-three rating and 106 penalty minutes, second on the team behind only defenseman Nikita Zadorov.

In January, the Bruins signed Kastelic to a three-year extension that carries a $1,566,667 cap hit, according to PuckPedia. The new contract will begin in the upcoming 2025-26 season.

The Bruins have three games remaining in their regular-season schedule, while this spring marks the first time since 2016 where the club will not participate in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.