The Boston Bruins carried 19-year-old forward Matthew Poitras on their roster out of camp anticipating this situation. Boston, and more importantly Poitras, have played their ninth game of the season. If the rookie forward plays another game, his entry-level contract will kick in this season. On Tuesday, the Bruins made their decision regarding Poitras's future.

The Bruins will keep the 19-year-old on their roster, head coach Jim Montgomery confirmed. This decision came down to one simple thing for Boston: Poitras's play on the ice. “He earned it,” Montgomery told the media, via NHL.com.

Poitras played rather well in preseason from the get-go. In fact, he was the team's standout performer in their preseason opener against the New York Rangers. He's carried that momentum into the regular season, recording five points in nine games.

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“We're comfortable with him. There's still no guarantees he's here the rest of the year, but we feel that the way he's progressed that, for the time being, he's going to be a Bruin,” Montgomery said of the rookie forward, via NHL.com.

Montgomery went on to mention the 19-year-old's hockey IQ and skill as standout traits. However, his best trait, according to the Bruins head coach, has been his effort level. Poitras has competed night in and night out, which helped Boston come to this decision.

As Montgomery said, there is no guarantee that Poitras will remain in the NHL the entire year. However, when he takes the ice on Thursday, the first year of his three-year entry-level contract kicks in. It'll be interesting to see how long the 19-year-old sticks in the NHL this season.