Matt Grzelcyk

Matthew Grzelcyk ( ; born January 5, 1994) is an American professional ice hockey defenseman who is currently an unrestricted free agent. He most recently played for the Chicago Blackhawks of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected by the Boston Bruins with the 85th overall pick in the third round of the 2012 NHL entry draft, with whom he spent the first eight seasons of his NHL career, and has also played for the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Playing career As a youth, Grzelcyk played in the 2007 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with the Middlesex Islanders minor ice hockey team, along with teammates Jon Gillies and Miles Wood.

Grzelcyk attended Belmont Hill School before joining the USNTDP of the USHL, winning a gold medal at the 2012 U18 World Juniors in the Czech Republic. He committed to play for Boston University in the Hockey East Conference of the NCAA.

He was named to the Hockey East All-Freshman team in 2012. He was selected to the preliminary roster for the 2013 World Juniors but did not make the final cut.

He served as captain of the Terriers his junior and senior season. He was named an assistant captain at the 2014 World Juniors but the US did not medal. He scored the overtime winning goal in the 63rd Beanpot that gave BU their 30th title, and was named the tournament MVP. He played 124 games during his four-year career at BU, scoring 26 goals and assisting on 69.

On April 1, 2016, he signed a two-year entry-level deal with the Boston Bruins, starting with the 2016–17 season. He joined Boston's affiliate Providence Bruins of the American Hockey League (AHL) on an Amateur Tryout Agreement for the rest of the 2015–16 campaign.

On December 14, 2016, Grzelcyk made his NHL debut with the Bruins in a 4–3 OT loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Grzelcyk spent 6 weeks of the 2017-2018 season playing with the Providence Bruins before returning to the NHL on November 22, 2017

On November 22, 2017, in a game against the New Jersey Devils, Grzelcyk got his first NHL assist on a goal from teammate Jake DeBrusk. On November 24, 2017, Grzelcyk scored his first NHL goal in a 4-3 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins.

During the summer before the 2018–19 season, Grzelcyk signed a two-year contract to stay with the Bruins. Grzelcyk and the Bruins qualified for the 2019 Stanley Cup Finals, where he suffered a head injury as the result of an elbow to the head by Blues center Oskar Sundqvist. Sundqvist was suspended for Game 3 of the finals,

After eight seasons with the Boston Bruins, Grzelcyk left the organization as a free agent and was signed to a one-year, $2.75 million contract for the season by the Pittsburgh Penguins on July 1, 2024.

After going unsigned during the 2025 offseason, Grzelcyk joined the Chicago Blackhawks on a professional tryout agreement for the 2025–26 preseason on September 16, 2025; several weeks later, on October 5, Grzelcyk signed a one-year contract with the team for the 2025–26 season.

Personal life Grzelcyk's father and older brother, both named John, work at TD Garden. John Grzelcyk Sr. started working at Boston Garden in 1967 and has stayed with the organization ever since. On October 25, 2021, Grzelcyk's father was diagnosed with prostate cancer, while undergoing radiation treatments John Sr. continued work at TD Garden. The two elder Grzelcyks are members of the arena's "bull gang", which converts the building from hockey to basketball and back: John Jr. is also a Zamboni driver for certain Bruins games.

Growing up, Grzelcyk lived a block from the Charlestown rink at Edwards Playground. He also grew up with fellow 2012 NHL entry draft pick Jimmy Vesey. The two first met when they were around the age of six, playing hockey together for a team named the Middlesex Islanders.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs Regular season Playoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 2009–10 Belmont Hill School HS-Prep 31 2 18 20 30 — — — — — 2010–11 U.S. NTDP Juniors USHL 36 1 9 10 28 2 0 0 0 2 2010–11 U.S. NTDP U17 USDP 55 2 16 18 40 — — — — — 2011–12 U.S. NTDP Juniors USHL 24 1 10 11 6 — — — — — 2011–12 U.S. NTDP U18 USDP 60 3 20 23 22 — — — — — 2012–13 Boston University HE 38 3 20 23 26 — — — — — 2013–14 Boston University HE 19 3 8 11 16 — — — — — 2014–15 Boston University HE 41 10 28 38 36 — — — — — 2015–16 Boston University HE 27 10 13 23 36 — — — — — 2016–17 Providence Bruins AHL 70 6 26 32 18 17 0 3 3 8 2016–17 Boston Bruins NHL 2 0 0 0 2 — — — — — 2017–18 Boston Bruins NHL 61 3 12 15 22 11 0 1 1 4 2017–18 Providence Bruins AHL 14 0 4 4 14 — — — — — 2018–19 Boston Bruins NHL 66 3 15 18 68 20 4 4 8 6 2019–20 Boston Bruins NHL 68 4 17 21 34 12 0 1 1 4 2020–21 Boston Bruins NHL 37 5 15 20 22 11 1 3 4 4 2021–22 Boston Bruins NHL 73 4 20 24 24 5 0 0 0 6 2022–23 Boston Bruins NHL 75 4 22 26 28 4 0 0 0 0 2023–24 Boston Bruins NHL 63 2 9 11 37 3 0 0 0 2 2024–25 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 82 1 39 40 16 — — — — — 2025–26 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 69 0 12 12 32 — — — — — NHL totals 596 26 161 187 285 66 5 9 14 26

International Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM 2011 United States U17 5 1 5 6 2 2012 United States U18 6 1 0 1 2 2014 United States WJC 5th 5 2 4 6 2 Junior totals 16 4 9 13 6

Awards and honors Award Year College All-Hockey East Rookie Team 2012–13 Hockey East All-Tournament Team 2013 AHCA East First-Team All-American 2014–15 Hockey East All-Tournament Team 2015 NCAA All-Tournament Team 2015 All-Hockey East First Team 2015–16 AHCA East First-Team All-American 2015–16