Bruins’ Mittelstadt Is Poised for a Bounceback Season

Clifton had already found success beforehand in Boston his first time around, playing 18 postseason games in 2018-19 when the Bruins made it to the Stanley Cup Final. He recorded five points as a defensive defenseman. He could be poised for a bigger role on a younger Bruins team this season as a veteran and a leader.

The question of Mittelstadt, who was a fixture on the same line as Viktor Arvidsson and Pavel Zacha in 2025-26, remains.

Mittelstadt’s Best Season Was in 2022-23

Mittelstadt’s best season came in 2022-23 with the Sabres, where he played to the potential of his eighth overall draft selection. He played on a line with Jeff Skinner and Alex Tuch. That season, he recorded 59 points (15 goals, 44 assists) and the trio combined for a 56.6 expected goals percentage (xG%), scoring 3.71 goals per 60 per MoneyPuck.

How Mittelstadt Has Fared in Boston

Mittelstadt has a small sample size in Boston; in 2024-25, he played 18 games as a Bruin after a trade from the Colorado Avalanche for Charlie Coyle and put up six points. He joined a line with Vinni Lettieri and Cole Koepke and played 10 games with them, putting up an xG% of 55.60 per Natural Stat Trick. In those four games, they recorded two points as a line.

In 2025-26, he spent the majority of the season on the wing, alongside Zacha and Arvidsson. The line combined for a total of 42 goals, 554 shot attempts, and an xG% of 49.03.

Per First Star Scouting, his scouting report suggests he’d thrive as a playmaker, in addition to being a goal-scorer. Given that this scouting report is nearly a decade old, I’m not certain that he’s a pure goal-scorer in the NHL.

“Explosive and dynamic offensive talent, Mittelstadt is arguably the most creative player in this draft with a set of hands that routinely make defenders and goaltenders alike look foolish. Good at creating offense on the rush but also understands his role positionally in the offensive zone.” – Brandon Holmes, Riding Pine Hockey

In the last three seasons, he’s scored a total of 48 goals and hasn’t scored 20 once in his entire career. Perhaps he’s more suitable as a center, alongside skillful forwards, as he thrived alongside juggernauts like Skinner and Tuch as a Sabre.

Bruins Need To Figure Out How Best To Utilize Him

The Bruins will need to figure out how Mittelstadt best fits into a quickly evolving team that is getting younger.

Will he be best served by being traded elsewhere where he can thrive? Or will it be best if he’s in the top nine as center, playing alongside James Hagens? If Mittelstadt is used in that role, he could block Matthew Poitras’s ascension into the Bruins system as a full-time NHL player.

Also, with Arvidsson gone to the Detroit Red Wings, the Bruins no longer have one of their best lines to rely upon, and head coach Marco Sturm will need to head back to the drawing board to find linemates with similar chemistry for Mittelstadt.

Mittelstadt is a 2017 eighth overall pick who has found a role on the Bruins as a secondary-scoring option. It is up to Sturm and company to find the right puzzle pieces to give him a chance to have another career season.