Despite a slight dip in production this season, Pavel Zacha was one of the better performing Bruins in 2024-25

When the Boston Bruins acquired Pavel Zacha from the New Jersey Devils in the summer of 2022, general manager Don Sweeney was hoping that the Black and Gold were getting a player who could break out after struggling with the Devils. The reviews of his first two seasons in Boston were career years and two seasons that not many people saw coming.

This past season, however, it was a rough season for everyone who played for the Bruins, and you can include Zacha in that. It was a season that saw a lot of change with Brad Marchand, Brandon Carlo, and Charlie Coyle being traded at the deadline, and some of those moves affected Zacha in the Boston lineup. With that said, it's time to grade Zacha's 2024-25 season with the Black and Gold.

Pavel Zacha's Performance

Like so many other players on the roster, Zacha saw a dip in his stats from last season, but in the overall big picture, it wasn't as bad as others. In 2022-23, he had 21 goals and 36 assists for 57 points during the record-breaking season, then last season, he had 21 goals again, but had a career-high in assists with 38. This past season saw his numbers dip to 14 goals and 33 assists playing in all 82 games. Again, not bad, but a dip.

Zacha performed well in all situations again for the Bruins, and he played both at center and on the wing for interim coach Joe Sacco. Another player from the 2015 Entry Draft, where he was selected sixth overall by New Jersey, the 28-year-old was one of the few players that performed well despite a dip in his production.

Pavel Zacha Moving Forward

Zacha is signed for two more years with the Bruins after inking a new deal a couple of years ago with an AAV of $4.75 million. You would expect Zacha to remain in Boston, but with a vital off-season on the docket for Sweeney, you can't rule anything out in terms of players possibly being moved.

There are more expensive players that could be moved if Boston decides to go that route, but some moves are coming, and we will have to wait to find out what they are. Zacha is still a top-six forward for the Bruins should they keep him and finding him second-line help via a trade or free agency is a must by Sweeney.

Pavel Zacha: B-