In light of their recent run of injuries, the Boston Bruins have made a number of call ups in recent weeks, including Matej Blumel. The forward was called up along with Riley Tufte, and is currently third on the Providence Bruins in points with two goals and 13 points in 13 games.
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The 25-year-old, Czech forward signed a one-year deal worth $875,000 over the summer. After leading the American Hockey League (AHL) in goals last season, it’s time to see if he is ready to translate his goal scoring ability to the NHL. The Bruins, desperate for help in the goals department going into this season, made sense to be the team to take the leap. After a decent but not extraordinary preseason, he was sent down to Providence, but now has an opportunity to try and make a lasting impression.
Road to the NHL Draft
Blumel was born in Tabor, Czechia. His father was a former Czech linesman, and he grew up playing junior hockey in the HC Pardubice organization. He played for the U16, U18, and U20 teams, before making the transition in the 2017-18 season to play in North America for the Waterloo Black Hawks in the United States Hockey League (USHL). This is very common for European players to give them a chance to adapt to the smaller rink size in North American leagues leading up to their draft years.
While there were some adjustments during the 2017-18 season, Blumel put together a terrific campaign in 2018-19, scoring 30 goals and 60 points in 58 games for the Black Hawks. He was second on the team in points that season and also competed internationally for Czechia, registering five goals and nine points in 16 international games.
While eligible for the 2018 draft, Blumel went undrafted. But after his fantastic 2018-19 season, he was drafted 100th overall in the fourth-round of the 2019 NHL Draft by the Edmonton Oilers. He was praised for the speed and energy he brings to the ice, as well as his abilities to play on the penalty kill and create shorthanded opportunities.
Return to Czechia
For the 2019-20 season, Blumel was supposed to join the NCAA ranks and play for the University of Connecticut. Instead, he returned to Czechia and played in the men’s league for Paradubice. Knowing what was to come in the following months with COVID, it ended up being a pretty good decision. It was an adjustment and his stats definitely took a dip, registering only four goals and five points in 31 games, but he showed improvement over the following two seasons in Czechia. Internationally, he played for Czechia at the 2020 World Juniors, appearing in five games and registering one goal. One of his teammates at the tournament was former Bruin, Jakub Lauko.
In the following seasons with Paradubice, Blumel’s scoring abilities started to come through again. He had 17 goals in 49 games in 2020-21 and 12 goals in 49 games in 2021-22. Also in 2021-22, he appeared in 27 games for Czechia internationally, adding in another nine goals and helping Czechia earn the bronze medal at the 2022 World Championships.
AHL Debut
In the summer of 2022, the Oilers, having not extended Blumel a contract, lost their exclusive rights to him. The Dallas Stars decided to offer him a two-year entry-level deal, bringing him back to North America for the 2022-23 season. Having gained experience playing against grown men back in Czechia, he was able to jump right into things in the AHL and put together a strong rookie season for the Texas Stars. He had 44 points in 58 games, including 19 goals. He finished 16th overall in rookie scoring, but had 0.76 points per game, which was seventh amongst all rookies that played in over 20 games. One of the players that finished ahead of him was now teammate, Georgii Merkulov.
Blumel made his NHL debut for Dallas in the 2022-23 season, appearing in six games and registering one goal, his first NHL goal, on Nov. 22, 2022 against the Philadelphia Flyers. In 2023-24, he had 31 goals and 62 points in 72 games. The following season, 2024-25 saw him lead the league in goals, scoring 39 in 67 games and registering 72 total points. He also appeared in seven NHL games and scored a goal.
Additionally, besides winning the Willie Marshall Award for most goals in a season, Blumel was also named to the AHL All-Star game in 2024 and named to the 2025 First All-Star Team. One of the few things he was unable to accomplish in the AHL was help Texas win the AHL championship, the Calder Cup.
Blumel made improvements in each season of his AHL career so far, and after leading the league in goals last season, it was clear the 25-year-old needed a chance at an NHL opportunity. But given the forward situation in Dallas with aging stars with unmovable contracts and some very talented young players itching for more playing time like Mavrik Bourque and Sam Steel, there really wasn’t a ton of room for Blumel with the Stars. This led to him signing his deal with the Bruins this summer.
What He Brings to the Bruins
It’s been an interesting start to the season for Blumel. After making a name for himself as a scorer, he only has two goals so far in 13 games in the AHL, but remains at a point per game pace thanks to his 11 assists so far. He received his first NHL call up for the Bruins and made his debut in the black and gold against the Carolina Hurricanes and joined the team on their California road trip. Unfortunately, he didn’t take advantage of the opportunity and was a healthy scratch against the San Jose Sharks with the return of Elias Lindholm to the lineup.
Blumel was scoreless in three games and was a minus-two while getting an opportunity to play on the second line. He only got four shots on goal while averaging 13:49 of ice time, which is more than Alex Steeves, another AHL call up who has made more of an impression in his eight NHL games so far this season.
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There is still potential with Blumel and while he is most likely to be sent back down to Providence in the next few days, he will be someone to continue to keep an eye on. His scoring abilities are not something to give up on making the adjustment to the NHL quite yet. The Bruins are always in need of more secondary scoring and if he can get back up to the goal-scoring pace in Providence, maybe he’ll be ready and have the confidence to fully take advantage of another call up later in the season.
But time is certainly starting to tick down for Blumel to make his case for a full time NHL role. He’s proven to be a talented player at the AHL level, but whether or not he is ready for the NHL remains to be seen. It remains a low risk deal for the Bruins as he’s on a cheap, one-year deal. If he works out, great, if he doesn’t, the organization has other guys to try out and potential moves that can be made at the deadline.
