Bruins’ Heinen Nominated for Masterton Trophy

“There are few better examples of resilience than Danton Heinen earning his way into a top-six role with the Boston Bruins this season after being a training camp invite that had to win his spot in the fall,” Joe Haggerty, chair of the PHWA Boston Chapter said. “Heinen went from not being in Boston’s plans at all in the offseason to becoming an integral, versatile part of this season’s team in his second go-round with the B’s organization. Aside from being a solid pro and a valued teammate, that dedication and resilience also makes him an excellent Bruins nominee for this season’s Masterton Trophy.”

Though Heinen may not win the Masterton Trophy, this nomination is in and of itself a great representation of the hard work that Heinen put in to be where he is this season. As Haggerty would mention, Heinen joined the Bruins on a professional tryout offer after having a down season with the Pittsburgh Penguins last season. Returning to the team that drafted him in the fourth round in 2014, Heinen would earn an opportunity with the Bruins and forced his way into a prominent role due to his hard work, versatility and production, especially relative to his $775,000 contract. Getting 16 goals out of a player basically making the minimum is as good a value deal as you’ll find in the NHL, and Heinen has been worth every penny and more for a Bruins team that found themselves up against the salary cap last offseason.

If Heinen does win the award, he’d be just the fifth Bruin to do so after Charlie Simmer, Gord Kluzak, Cam Neely and Phil Kessel.

Heinen Earning His Spot With the Bruins

At just 28 years old, Heinen certainly has a lot more left in the tank beyond this season and it would be surprising if the Bruins let get away for a second time after trading him in the past to the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for Nick Ritchie. While there will undoubtedly be mutual interest, it’s also hard to imagine that Heinen won’t command a fairly sizeable increase in salary after his output this season. Heinen has always been a reliable middle-six player who can make an impact in any situation, but he’s really seemingly put it all together at this point in his career. It’s easy to look at his 34 points in 69 games and determine that he has replaceable counting stats, but anybody watching the Bruins beyond just the boxscore should know how integral Heinen has been to the team this season.

Arguments are regularly made that the team should always be more important than the individual and nobody exemplifies that better than Heinen. Despite this, the Langley, British Columbia native could still set a new career-high in goals this season as he sits just two goals behind the 18 goals he scored with Pittsburgh during the 2021-22 season. A selfless, smart player who plays a winning brand of hockey and worries more about the crest on the front of his jersey than his own name on the back, Heinen’s contributions have not gone unnoticed this season.