Tight-knit Bruins have full group back following McAvoy and Carlo deals

It took a little while to get here.

Negotiations with Charlie McAvoy and Brandon Carlo kept the Bruins from having their full training camp core together, at least to start. The former signed his new three-year deal on Sunday, with the latter inking a two-year contract two days later.

Now with their two prized RFA’s back in the fold, the Bruins have their tight-knit group intact.

“It feels great to be back around the guys,” Carlo said following Wednesday’s on-ice session at Warrior Ice Arena. “Obviously it’s a lot of fun to see the faces that you haven’t seen in a little while. It’s a brotherhood here and a family as well.”

That family feeling was on full display during the Bruins’ playoff run.

The Bruins didn’t just have a tight-knit group inside the locker room either. They shared their bonding moments for the world to see on social media. They weren’t shy discussing any topic with one another through text, phone call or other forms of communication.

McAvoy shared that sentiment numerous times, including at the press conference following his new deal. Carlo echoed those thoughts inside the Brighton confines on Wednesday.

Because of that, Carlo and McAvoy want to stay in Boston long-term. They had to settle for a bridge deal instead. But they had each other to lean on during their holdouts.

“With both of us missing [the start of] camp at the same time, it’s nice to have somebody doing that with you. Obviously it became more uncomfortable when he signed back and I was still at home,” Carlo said about his discussions with his fellow RFA in McAvoy. “But through that time I was communicating with him and with both of us in the same position and missing camp, it was good to have that resource to discuss that.”

Holdouts aren’t ideal. The media speculation grows each day when a significant core player remains unsigned.

Yet, even with their awareness of Carlo and McAvoy holding out, their teammates remained focused with each passing day.

“The feeling around the room was that they would both get signed,” said forward Jake DeBrusk, who enters 2019-20 on the final year of his entry-level deal.

“I kept in contact with both of those guys, and I think now that everyone is back…we’re missing Mojo [Marcus Johansson] and Noelie [Noel Acciari], but other than that we have a pretty similar squad from last year. It’s one of those things where everyone feels comfortable and we didn’t feel any distractions or anything.”

“The band is back together, huh?” head coach Bruce Cassidy added.

But how have Carlo and McAvoy looked in their brief time on the ice?

“Good for Brandon to get his deal done. It’s nice to have him back. He’s a good player for us and we’ve known that all along,” Cassidy said. “Charlie looked better today, another day on the ice.”

Another day and back to business as usual with Carlo and McAvoy present.