McAvoy was born on December 21, 1997, in Long Beach, New York.[1] His father, Charles McAvoy Sr., was the fourth-generation owner of Charles A. McAvoy Plumbing & Heating in Long Beach, while his mother Jennifer worked as an elementary school teacher in Bethpage, New York. Although he grew up surrounded by New York Islanders fans, McAvoy and his family were supporters of the New York Rangers of the National Hockey League (NHL), as several members of the Rangers were customers at the family plumbing company.[2]
Leading up to the 2016 NHL Entry Draft, McAvoy was highly regarded by scouts and was considered one of the top four defensemen available.[9]
Boston Bruins
McAvoy signing autographs at a fan convention in 2017
2017–18 season
On March 29, 2017, McAvoy ended his college hockey career by signing for an amateur try-out with the Providence Bruins, the Bruins' AHL affiliate.[10] On April 10, McAvoy signed an entry-level NHL contract.[11]
McAvoy's first game was on April 12, 2017, a 2–1 playoff victory over the Ottawa Senators. Despite having no prior NHL experience, he logged the second most ice time on the team.[12] At a time when four of their top six defenders were injured, McAvoy notched three assists in six games. Following the Bruins' loss to the Ottawa Senators in the first round of the playoffs, by mid-June 2017 Bruins legend and Hall of Fame defenseman Bobby Orr spoke highly of McAvoy's level of talent and work ethic towards succeeding in NHL-level play.[13]
McAvoy made his NHL regular season debut on October 5, 2017, the Bruins season opener against the Nashville Predators. McAvoy got his first regular season points in the game, a goal and an assist in a 4–3 win.[14]
On December 18, 2017, McAvoy scored a Gordie Howe hat trick, which is an unofficial stat where a player gets a goal, an assist, and a fight in one game, against the Columbus Blue Jackets. The Bruins went on to win the game, 7–2.[15]
Shortly after New Years' 2018, McAvoy was operated on for symptoms of what was diagnosed as supraventricular tachycardia, evidenced by an episode of heart arrhythmia following the Bruins' November 26, 2017 home game against the Edmonton Oilers. He was expected to take two weeks to fully recover from the ablative procedure used to treat the condition.[16] By January 29, McAvoy had resumed practicing at the Warrior Ice Arena, only one week (January 22) after completing the atrial ablation procedure.[17] By February 1, McAvoy had resumed full participation with his teammates in Bruins team practice sessions at the Warrior facility.[18] McAvoy returned to NHL play on February 3, 2018, skating some 18:51 of ice time during a 4-1 Bruins home ice win against the Toronto Maple Leafs.[19]
The following season, after playing in seven games, McAvoy was taken out of the Bruins lineup due to suffering a concussion on October 18 in a game against the Edmonton Oilers.[26] He was officially placed on the Bruins injured reserve on October 30,[27] and was activated off injured reserve on December 6, after missing 20 games.[28] In his second game back, McAvoy left a game between the Bruins and Toronto Maple Leafs early after a late hit from Leafs forward Zach Hyman, but did not suffer any apparent injury. Hyman later received a two-game suspension for the hit.[29] On May 7, 2019, McAvoy was suspended one playoff game for an illegal check to the head of Columbus Blue Jacketsright wingerJosh Anderson during game 6 of the second round. As a result of the suspension, he missed game 1 of the Eastern Conference Final against the Carolina Hurricanes.[30] McAvoy's sophomore season would end in heartbreak as the Bruins would fall to the St. Louis Blues in Game 7 of the 2019 Stanley Cup Finals. McAvoy recorded eight points in the playoff run.
2019–20 season
On September 15, 2019, as a restricted free agent, McAvoy signed a three-year, $14.7 million contract with the Bruins.[31]
McAvoy was expected to take a big step forward in his production starting in the 2019–20 season, playing alongside NHL legend and Bruins captain Zdeno Chára. Unfortunately, this wasn't the case for McAvoy, who struggled when it came to his offensive numbers.[32] He would only have 13 assists by the end of the calendar year, far from his projected total. It wouldn't be until February 5, 2020, that McAvoy would score his first goal of the season, an overtime winner against the Chicago Blackhawks. The NHL suspended the season in early March due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and later announced that the season was cancelled altogether, finishing McAvoy's season with five goals and 27 assists. In the 2020 Stanley Cup playoffs, playing in a bubble due to the pandemic, McAvoy recorded one goal and three assists, as the Bruins fell in five games in the second round to the Lightning. Although his offensive numbers were seen as low, he took a huge step defensively, and finished 10th in Norris Trophy voting, awarded to the league's best defensemen.
2020–21 season
In the 2020 offseason, both Chara and Torey Krug, important parts of the Bruins defense corps, left in the free agency. As a result, McAvoy was seen as a top defenseman on the Bruins roster.[33] Defensively, McAvoy once played up to expectations, this time finishing fifth in Norris Trophy voting. Offensively, he stayed at the same level as the previous season, with five goals and 25 assists, but this was seen as expected due the pandemic shortened season starting in mid-January rather than late-October. In the playoffs, McAvoy elevated his game. McAvoy scored an assist per game, with 11 assists in 11 games, adding a goal, which included a three assist performance in Game 5 of the second round against the New York Islanders. McAvoy was also the Bruins leader in time-on-ice during their playoff run, which ended in the second round to the Islanders.
2021–22 season
Once again set to be a restricted free agent, on October 15, 2021, McAvoy signed an eight-year, $76 million contract extension with the Bruins.[34] At the time, it was the biggest contract in Bruins history.[35]
In 2021–22, McAvoy finally took the step forward on offense that the Bruins and their fans were hoping he would. McAvoy scored career highs in both goals and assists, with 10 and 46, respectively. In addition to his offensive numbers, McAvoy continued to be a steady presence on the Bruins blue line, finishing top-5 in Norris voting for the second straight year, and top-10 for the third straight year. It was his best showing, finishing fourth in voting. In seven playoff games, McAvoy kept up his offensive stats with five assists, but the Bruins would fall in seven games to the Hurricanes.
2022–23 season
On June 3, 2022, the Bruins announced that McAvoy underwent shoulder surgery and would miss six months, sidelining him for the beginning of the 2022–23 season.[36] McAvoy would make his season debut on November 10, 2022, and scored a goal in the game. After that, it was smooth sailing for McAvoy and the Bruins, who would set the NHL single-season records with 65 wins and 135 points.[37] Unfortunately, this would not continue into the playoffs, as the Bruins would be upset by the Florida Panthers in seven games in the opening round of the 2023 Stanley Cup playoffs. McAvoy would have five assists in the series. In total, he had seven goals and 45 assists in the regular season.
2023–24 season
On October 30, 2023, McAvoy delivered an illegal check to the head on Florida Panthers defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson, who was injured on the play. McAvoy received a match penalty, and was suspended for four games.[38][39]
McAvoy led all defenseman in scoring at the 2018 IIHF World Championship with nine points, despite only playing in six games due to the Bruins playing in the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs. He won the bronze medal at the tournament.[41]
McAvoy married his longtime girlfriend in August 2023,[45] who is the daughter of the Pittsburgh Penguins' head coach Mike Sullivan. The two met at Boston University, and got engaged in July 2022 in Italy.[46]
^Russo, Eric (July 12, 2016). "Comm. Ave Connection: McAvoy Looks Up to Former BU Teammate Grzelcyk". bruins.nhl.com. Boston Bruins. Retrieved July 13, 2016. Boston University coach David Quinn paired McAvoy with Grzelcyk – the two-year team captain of the Terriers – to form one of the best blue line duos in college hockey. The two instantly connected, combining for 13 goals, 48 assists, and a plus-27 rating, while helping to pace BU to a spot in the NCAA Tournament. McAvoy's 25 points led all Terrier defensemen, while Grzelcyk's 23 points ranked second.
^Switaj, Caryn (March 29, 2017). "McAvoy Joining Providence on ATO". bruins.nhl.com. National Hockey League. Retrieved March 30, 2017. Bruins prospect Charlie McAvoy will be joining the Providence Bruins on an Amateur Tryout Agreement. (Boston Bruins) General Manager Don Sweeney made the announcement during a press conference on Wednesday morning at Warrior Ice Arena. "Charlie has decided that he'll be foregoing the rest of his college career," Sweeney told media. "He'll be signing an ATO very shortly and headed down to play games this weekend. He'll get practice time [on Thursday], and will probably practice Friday and likely be available for the weekend games." "He's ready, he's anxious, he's looking forward to playing games, so I suspect he'll be playing games this weekend," said Sweeney.
^"B's Ink Charlie McAvoy To 3-Year Entry-Level Contract". nhl.com/bruins. Boston Bruins. April 10, 2017. Retrieved April 10, 2017. Boston Bruins General Manager Don Sweeney announced today, April 10, that the team has signed Boston University defenseman Charlie McAvoy to a three-year entry-level contract, beginning with the 2016-17 season.
^O'Brien, James (2017-04-13). "Charlie McAvoy debuts in huge role – and shines – for Bruins". ProHockeyTalk. Retrieved 2017-04-13. The Boston Bruins threw 19-year-old defenseman Charlie McAvoy right into the deep end … and that unusual debut went swimmingly. His first NHL appearance was Game 1 of the Bruins' first-round series against the Ottawa Senators, and it's not as though McAvoy was eased into the mix. Only Zdeno Chara logged more ice time (25:32 to McAvoy's 24:11) for Boston. He actually led all skaters in ice time through the first two periods.
^Dolloff, Matt (June 14, 2017). "Bobby Orr 'Impressed' With Charlie McAvoy Right Away". boston.cbslocal.com. CBS Boston. Retrieved July 4, 2017. I was impressed with Charlie right out of the chute," Orr said. "He didn't look like a player that was just playing his first game in the NHL...He's a wonderful young man, great family and he knows he's going to work this summer..."He doesn't think he has it made, he knows how tough it's going to be next season because he has to repeat and Charlie will be ready.
^Russo, Eric (October 6, 2017). "DeBrusk's Debut Was One to Remember". nhl.com/bruins. Boston Bruins. Retrieved October 6, 2017. Charlie McAvoy, who was playing in his first regular season NHL game, had the helper on Pastrnak's goal, before grabbing the first of his career to give Boston a 3-1 lead late in the second period.
^Russo, Eric (January 23, 2018). "Cassidy: McAvoy 'Doing Terrific' After Procedure". nhl.com/bruins. Boston Bruins. Retrieved January 23, 2018. A day after undergoing an ablation to treat an abnormal heart rhythm, Bruins rookie defenseman Charlie McAvoy has been released from Massachusetts General Hospital and is "doing very well…he's doing terrific," according to Boston coach Bruce Cassidy..."My concern, and our concern as an organization, is obviously his health going forward," added Cassidy. "Whatever time he needs to recover…his health is our No. 1 priority."...The 20-year-old is expected to miss two weeks following the successful procedure.
^Russo, Eric (January 29, 2018). "McAvoy Gets Back to Work Following Procedure". nhl.com/bruins. National Hockey League. Retrieved January 30, 2018. Following the ablation, the team announced that McAvoy's expected recovery time was two weeks. He is currently at the one-week mark and did some light skating for the first time on Monday before the Bruins' full team practice in Brighton..."I had basically a week of nothing," said McAvoy. "I was told to kind of just sit around and make sure that I'm not exerting myself in any way that is going to disrupt my first week of recovery…today, I'm back here back at the rink, and we'll be able to start doing some stuff."
^Russo, Eric (February 1, 2018). "McAvoy Takes Next Step in Recovery". nhl.com/bruins. National Hockey League. Retrieved February 2, 2018. Charlie McAvoy took another critical step in his recovery on Thursday, joining his teammates for an optional morning skate at Warrior Ice Arena. The rookie defenseman had been skating by himself for the last three days...According to coach Bruce Cassidy, McAvoy has been cleared for full practice participation and has not ruled out a Saturday return [against the Toronto Maple Leafs] for the blue liner, who underwent a heart ablation procedure last week.
^Russo, Eric (February 28, 2018). "Need to Know: Bruins vs. Penguins". nhl.com/bruins. National Hockey League. Retrieved March 1, 2018. Making History: With his overtime winner against the Hurricanes, McAvoy became the youngest Bruins defenseman in team history to notch such a goal, according to NHL Public Relations.
.jpg)
