David Pastrnak Wins 2015 Bruins Seventh Player Award
Boston Bruins rookie David Pastrnak didn’t need many games to make a strong impression.
The 18-year-old forward was named the winner of the NESN’s 2015 Seventh Player Award on Tuesday after just 40 career NHL games. The honor annually goes to the Bruins player who most exceeded fans’ expectations.
Pastrnak scored 10 goals with 15 assists with the Bruins this season. His 25 points ranks him 11th on the team, though he’s played over 30 fewer games than all 10 players in front of him besides David Krejci.
The Bruins selected Pastrnak with the 25th overall pick in the 2014 NHL Entry Draft and assigned him to the Providence Bruins of the American Hockey League to start the season. After tearing up the AHL with 27 points in 24 games, getting a taste of the NHL in late November and shining for Team Czech Republic at the World Junior Championships, the Bruins called Pastrnak up for good on Jan. 6. He scored his first two NHL goals on Jan. 10 against the Philadelphia Flyers in the first of back-to-back two-goal games.
Put together on the same line on Feb. 22 following an injury to Krejci, Pastrnak combined with Ryan Spooner and Milan Lucic for 31 points over the first 14 games in March. The three were playing so well together that once Krejci was able to return, coach Claude Julien elected to keep the line intact and use Krejci as a right wing alongside Patrice Bergeron.
The Seventh Player Award went to Reilly Smith in 2014, while Dougie Hamilton earned the honor in 2013.
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