The 2025-26 season promises to be an unfamiliar one for the Boston Bruins. Though the team has been a perennial contender for the better part of two decades, this season comes with far more uncertainty than assurances. With a new head coach in Marco Sturm and several fresh faces on the roster, the Bruins will have to figure out their identity over time and see how it translates to success. A good place to start is with the team’s opening night roster, which will need to be determined sooner rather than later. One lineup decision that was previously unknown revolved around whether Sturm would play Pavel Zacha on the wing or if he’d have him start out as a center, though that question already seems to have been answered.
Ahead of the Bruins’ first preseason game, the plan early on seems to be Zacha starting down the middle. This is a familiar spot for the 28-year-old forward who has experience playing both as a center and a winger in the NHL, including during his time in Boston.
As one of the Bruins’ most consistent two-way players, it’s unsurprising that Zacha is being given a chance to be the team’s No. 2 center this preseason. Zacha’s 2024-25 campaign was his lowest output as a Bruin, recording 14 goals and 47 points in 82 games. That followed back-to-back seasons of 21 goals with 57 points and 21 goals with 59 points. While the dip was noticeable, calling it a disappointment may be unfair since 47 points still ranked as the third-best total of his NHL career.
Still, the Bruins are going to need more from him next season and opening him up offensively down the middle might be exactly what he and the team need.
Another factor to consider is that Zacha has proven to be one of the Bruins’ best players in the faceoff circle, averaging a 52.9% faceoff percentage over three seasons with the team. The Bruins need to get back to being an above-average faceoff team and win more puck-possession battles this season if they want to improve on what was a shockingly poor 2024-25 season.
Zacha and the Bruins’ Center Depth
If Zacha can once again handle the center role effectively, it could take pressure off Elias Lindholm and let Casey Mittelstadt handle the other center spot, giving the Bruins some solid depth at center down the lineup. Another option would be to play Mittelstadt in the top-six as a winger, giving the Bruins the option to play one of their younger forwards down the middle on the third line, including Matt Poitras or Fraser Minten.
As it stands, Mittelstadt and Zacha should open as the team’s middle-six centers. While Zacha makes more sense as the team’s second-line center, Sturm could opt to use Mittelstadt in that role, giving Zacha the keys to the team’s third line.
Related: Bruins Need Centers and Prospects to Step Up in 2025-26
“He said he likes me as a center, but if he needs me as a winger, he’s going to talk to me ahead of time and tell me what my situation is going to be,” said Zacha of Sturm. “But he said at the start of training camp, I’ll be at center, and we’ll go from there.” from ‘5 takeaways from Day 3 of Bruins training camp‘ Boston.com – 9/19/2025
As is always the case, it’s important to remember that no team starts and ends the season with the same lineup. The players on the team and the lineup configurations seen in the preseason may seem like the be-all, end-all in the moment, but teams are constantly in flux and many variables change things along the way. For the Bruins, finding the best balance between chemistry-building and learning on the fly will be exactly the type of balance they’ll want to strike.
Zacha may start the season down the middle, but he could just as easily find himself on the wing by the time the season ends. Whether he’s on the first, second or third line, or even on a new roster by the time the season is over, nothing would be surprising. This isn’t to suggest the Bruins are actively shopping him, but it reflects the reality of their current retool. For now, Zacha’s versatility is an asset that the Bruins should take advantage of, and this seems to be the case early on.
