Analyst Shares Bold Prediction On Marat Khusnutdinov

Boston Bruins forward Marat Khusnutdinov

Analyst Shares Bold Prediction On Marat Khusnutdinov originally appeared on NESN. Add NESN as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The Boston Bruins proved many doubters wrong by making the playoffs, and it was due to the play of some surprise players.

One player who came as a surprise and played a key role was Marat Khusnutdinov, who began the year as a healthy scratch. Boston acquired Khusnutdinov at the 2025 NHL Trade Deadline from the Minnesota Wild and appeared in just 18 games down the stretch.

To begin the 2026 season, Khusnutdinov was a healthy scratch for the first 10 games, but once he entered the lineup, he didn’t look back. Khusnutdinov became a top-six forward, and Bruins analyst Fluto Shinzawa of The Athletic believes the forward will be a 20-goal scorer in the NHL.

“Khusnutdinov started the year as a healthy scratch in five of the first 10 games but progressed into one of coach Marco Sturm’s favorites because of his puck pursuit, hockey sense and versatility,” Shinzawa wrote. “He has the smarts, speed and will to be a 20-goal scorer.”

Khusnutdinov recorded 15 goals and 18 assists for 33 points in 77 games, as the 23-year-old Russian became an impact forward for Boston, and him scoring 20 goals in the very near future does’t seem out of the question.