Bruins Prospect News and Notes

cshea

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CHL

Brett Harrison (C, Oshawa) 16 games 9-5=14
Matthew Poitras (C, Guelph) 18 games 6-19=25
Frederic Brunet (D, Rimouski) 24 games 3-19=22
Ryan Mast (D, Sarnia) 17 games 0-9=9
Jackson Edward (D, London) 24 games 3-10=13
Reid Dyck (G, Swift Current) .888 in 10 games

NCAA

Mason Lohrei (D, Ohio State) 16 games 0-11=11
Riley Duran (C, Providence) 14 games 7-4=11
Trevor Kuntar (F, Boston College) 10 games 5-4=9
Oskar Jellvik (F, Boston College) 10 games 1-6=7
Andre Gasseau (F, Boston College) 11 games 1-3=4
Ty Gallagher (D, Boston University) 13 games 0-5=5
Quinn Olson (F, Minnesota-Duluth) 14 games 2-5=7
Cole Spicer (F, Minnesota-Duluth) 13 games 2-1=3
Jake Schmaltz (F, North Dakota) 15 games 3-4=7
Mason Langenbrunner (D, Harvard) 9 games 0-0=0
Dustyn McFaul (D, Clarkson) 6 games 0-2=2
Philip Svedeback (G, Providence) 13 games .901

Europe

Dans Locmelis (F, Swedish Jr) 23 games 11-18=29
Roman Bychkov (D, KHL) 14 games 0-1=1
Mattias Mantykivi (F, Finland) 23 games 5-8=13
Jonathan Myrenberg (D, Swedish) 19 games 3-2=5

Added newcomer Jonathan Myrenberg who was picked up in the Studnicka trade.

Lohrei is playing big minutes for Ohio State this year.

View: https://twitter.com/SchlossmanGF/status/1595107325081456640?s=20&t=dfZ2zmrj7DaCh8bcsbb53g
 

j44thor

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Is OSU significantly worse this year? Lohrei's #s are down from his FR season and the rest of the list looks like a pile of mehh unless I'm missing something.
 

lexrageorge

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Is OSU significantly worse this year? Lohrei's #s are down from his FR season and the rest of the list looks like a pile of mehh unless I'm missing something.
Ohio State's leading scorer last season, Georgi Merkulov, is now playing for the Providence Bruins (4-9-13 in 16 games). And tOSU's record of 9-6-1 overall, 4-4 conference is indeed worse than last season's 22-13-2 (13-9-2).
 

cshea

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Is OSU significantly worse this year? Lohrei's #s are down from his FR season and the rest of the list looks like a pile of mehh unless I'm missing something.
I have not watched him play, so I can't really comment on how he looks. I think point totals are not a great tool to evaluate defenseman. I just post them because that's all that's publicly available. His point totals could be impacted by a lot of variables outside of his control. Less talent around him, bad on-ice shooting luck, shift in his deployment by the coaching staff are among the possibilities. The high TOI is a good sign though, it suggests the coaches trust him.

Agreed there is not a ton to be excited about elsewhere. Jellvik is fairly intriguing, he's a freshman at BC putting up deecent numbers in his first North American season. Svedeback is a freshman starting for a pretty good Providence team that is 3rd in Hockey East, though his numbers have started to dip. Duran is a nice story, late round draft pick that made the US WJC team from outside the USNDT program which is unusual.

That said Lohrei is the only player here that would be considered for the top of a Bruins prospect list. The exciting guys (if you want to call them that) are in Providence. Lysell, Merkulov, Beecher, McLaughlin.
 

The B’s Knees

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Poitras is having a promising season. Looks like he might be a decent playmaker.
He's leading his team in scoring (with 11 points in the last 5 games), was OHL player of the week recently, and is still an 18yr old.
I'm not excited - but I am hopeful.
 

burstnbloom

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I have not watched him play, so I can't really comment on how he looks. I think point totals are not a great tool to evaluate defenseman. I just post them because that's all that's publicly available. His point totals could be impacted by a lot of variables outside of his control. Less talent around him, bad on-ice shooting luck, shift in his deployment by the coaching staff are among the possibilities. The high TOI is a good sign though, it suggests the coaches trust him.

Agreed there is not a ton to be excited about elsewhere. Jellvik is fairly intriguing, he's a freshman at BC putting up deecent numbers in his first North American season. Svedeback is a freshman starting for a pretty good Providence team that is 3rd in Hockey East, though his numbers have started to dip. Duran is a nice story, late round draft pick that made the US WJC team from outside the USNDT program which is unusual.

That said Lohrei is the only player here that would be considered for the top of a Bruins prospect list. The exciting guys (if you want to call them that) are in Providence. Lysell, Merkulov, Beecher, McLaughlin.
I've watched Lohrei 3 times so far this year. He's better than last year while also not looking quite right. I think the knee has slowed him down a little, but he's much more aware in the d zone and his puck distribution on the breakout and in the ozone is legitimately sublime. He's very smooth and makes a lot of smart plays. I think the explosion comes back as he gets a few more months past surgery.
 

BostonFanInCanesLand

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Brassard has thrown down the gauntlet for big leaguers like Swayman. A saucer pass goal from his own end line (bounced at center ice and then glided down into the net).

 

cshea

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Seems like a reasonable list to me. The only omission that I think deserved a mention is Dans Locmelis. He's over a point per game in the Swedish Junior league and has had a nice showing for a weak Latvia team in the WJC's (both the summer one and the one that just concluded). He's generated a little bit of buzz recently. I believe he is headed to a Hockey East (UMass?) school next year.

He also aged out of Wheeler's criteria so he's not on the list but Brandon Bussi has been outstanding for Providence and is probably ahead of Keyser and DiPietro on the depth chart. He started the year in Maine but was called up due to a Keyser injury and currently leads the AHL in save percentage (0.934) in 16 appearances. I tend to throw the age thing out with goalies, their development path is usually a lot longer than skaters.
 

daburgaman

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I’m taking the kiddies (7 and 5) to the Providence game on Sunday afternoon. First game for them. Any advice on how to maybe get a puck in warm ups? We are planning on making signs “it’s my first game - can I get a puck”. But any other advice is appreciated!
 

The Mort Report

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I’m taking the kiddies (7 and 5) to the Providence game on Sunday afternoon. First game for them. Any advice on how to maybe get a puck in warm ups? We are planning on making signs “it’s my first game - can I get a puck”. But any other advice is appreciated!
I haven't experienced it, but I'd imagine signs and hanging out by the tunnel during warm ups is the best bet. I don't know how packed those games are, but I also wonder if visiting teams give away pucks too, might be less people fighting for them
 

RIFan

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I’m taking the kiddies (7 and 5) to the Providence game on Sunday afternoon. First game for them. Any advice on how to maybe get a puck in warm ups? We are planning on making signs “it’s my first game - can I get a puck”. But any other advice is appreciated!
Try to get down near the glass around the face off dots on either side, although bench side helps during warmups. If you get there early enough and get a good spot your chances of getting a puck are decent. My son has one from Marchand during his time with the Baby B’s. Great place to see a game. Have a great time.
 

daburgaman

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Try to get down near the glass around the face off dots on either side, although bench side helps during warmups. If you get there early enough and get a good spot your chances of getting a puck are decent. My son has one from Marchand during his time with the Baby B’s. Great place to see a game. Have a great time.
That was our plan. Do you know how early warm ups start? Was thinking we should get in there at least 30 mins before puck drop.
 

RoDaddy

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Merkulov has 14 points on nine goals in his last ten games. I was disappointed he didn't make the all-star team but would guess he'd make it over Lettieri (who he's overtaken for team scoring leadership) if the voting took place now. Also read somewhere that his all round game is coming around so he might still be a decent prospect
 

cshea

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Deadline is over and our draft picks are gone, so le'ts do an inventory of the players we do have:

NCAA

Mason Lohrei (D, Ohio State): 37 games 3-25=28
Riley Duran (F, Providence): 27 games 8-11=19
Trevor Kuntar (F, Boston College): 32 games 13-16=29
Oskar Jellvik (F, Boston College): 32 games 4-13=17
Andre Gasseau (F, Boston College): 34 games 9-17=26
Ty Gallagher (D, Boston University): 34 games 3-17=20
Quinn Olson (F, Minnesota-Duluth): 34 games 7-15=22
Cole Spicer (F, Minnesota-Duluth): 29 games 3-3=6
Jake Schmaltz (F, North Dakota): 30 games 4-5=9
Mason Langenbrunner (D, Harvard): 28 games 1-0=1
Dustyn McFaul (D, Clarkson) 28 games 0-8=8
Phillip Svedeback (G, Providence) 31 games .906

As we approach signing season, Lohrei is probably the biggest signee the Bruins have coming. It looks like Ohio State is a lock for the NCAA tournament so that won't be for a few weeks. Kuntar is also a possibility. BC stinks so that could come within the next week or two. They play UMass in the Hockey East playoffs on Wednesday, a loss and they are done. They also will be losing McFaul and Olson's signing rights if neither sign at the end of the year. We'll see if either are signed. Olson feels more likely than McFaul.

OHL

Brett Harrison (C, Windsor*) 51 games 32-31=63
Matthew Poitras (C, Guelph) 55 games 15-63=78
Frederic Brunet (D, Victoriaville*) 57 games, 14-51=65
Ryan Mast (D, Sarnia) 43 games 6-20=26
Jackson Edward (D, London) 46 games 4-20=24
Reid Dyck (G, Swift Current) 32 games, .883

Harrison and Brunet were traded mid-year to new teams. Harrison, along with Mast, have already signed ELC's and will likely join Providence when their junior season ends. The rest will go back to juniors for another season barring something unexpected.

Europe

Mattias Mantykivi (F, SM-Liga) 56 games 11-19=30
Dans Locmelis (F, Swe-Jr.) 40 games 23-33=56
Roman Bychkov (D, KHL) 17 games 0-2=2
Jonathan Myrenberg (D, Swe-1) 47 games 4-7=11...also has played 15 games in the top league without registering a point

Mantykivi's right's expire this summer, not sure if he is in their plans. Locmelis has turned into an interesting prospect, he had a couple of strong WJC's for a weak Lativan team. He's coming to North America for next season, I believe playing college hockey at UMass.
 

joe dokes

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Locmelis has turned into an interesting prospect, he had a couple of strong WJC's for a weak Lativan team. He's coming to North America for next season, I believe playing college hockey at UMass.
How does his playing NCAA affect the timing of his Bruins' rights?
 

GeminiFish

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With the college hockey playoffs beginning (and then ending soon for a bunch of teams), it will be interesting to see which undrafted seniors are targeted by the Bruins. One name that will likely come up for a number of pro teams is BU senior Wilmer Skoog. After a slow start he has come on to have a very good senior year, and is famous for having scored four "Michigan" lacrosse goals during his time at BU.
 

The B’s Knees

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Harrison, along with Mast, have already signed ELC's and will likely join Providence when their junior season ends. The rest will go back to juniors for another season barring something unexpected.
Currently, the Bruins are using 49/50 roster spots.

Per Cap Friendly:
Total NHL contracts per team = 50 (including two-way contracts and NHL contracts in the minors), players who meet the following three conditions do not count to this limit:
1. The player is 18 or 19 years of age
2. Is in a junior or European league
3. Have not played 11 NHL games the current season.

As of now, Harrison and Mast aren't counting toward the 50-man limit, but I assume they would count if they go to Providence?
Mast recently turned 20 in January, but maybe he's still exempt while in Junior?

If Harrison or Mast start to count among the 50 contracts, I don't see room for NCAA free agents (unless there's a path to "release" some AHL fodder but I don't know if that's allowed).
 

cshea

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They won't count against the 50 unless they play 10+ NHL games which isn't going to happen. I also should've noted that both Windsor and London are having very good years so neither player may even be available if they go deep into the playoffs. The OHL post-season ends mid-May, the Memorial Cup runs into June if one of them makes it.

In terms of the 49/50, they essentially have 1 more contract they can give out for this year. Typically for the kids whose rights they own they will sign the player to an AHL PTO (tryout) and then the ELC starting the following season. This is probably the route they take with Lohrei, Kuntar and anyone else they decide to sign. They can also do that with the UDFA's, that's what they did with Merkulov. If there is a player with a significant market they can add the player for this year and burn it as an incentive to sign. This is what they did they McLaughlin last year. They only have the 1 contract to do that with, I'm not sure if they'll use it or even what the UDFA market looks like this season.
 

Dummy Hoy

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Aw yeah, okay. I don't visit that thread as often as I should...
No, my bad. That's a joke from a story Colby Armstrong (I think) told years ago about getting in a fight in the minors and not realizing the guy fighting him was a savage who pumped him bad. Looks like Mac messed with the wrong guy.

edit (punchline): as Armstrong was in the locker room recovering Alexi Yashin (I think) just looked at him and said "check the game notes bud" meaning Army should have noticed the guy had 500 pims or whatever
 

Ferm Sheller

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No, my bad. That's a joke from a story Colby Armstrong (I think) told years ago about getting in a fight in the minors and not realizing the guy fighting him was a savage who pumped him bad. Looks like Mac messed with the wrong guy.

edit (punchline): as Armstrong was in the locker room recovering Alexi Yashin (I think) just looked at him and said "check the game notes bud" meaning Army should have noticed the guy had 500 pims or whatever
Gotcha. Thanks for making me do a search that led to this gem (BTW, per Armstrong himself, it was Alexandre Daigle, not Yashin):

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XS4N5GwO0_U
 

Dummy Hoy

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Last edited:

GeminiFish

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Ohio State's season is over after a loss to Quinnipiac today. Will be interested in seeing what happens with Defenseman Mason Lohrei.
 

The B’s Knees

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If Lohrei signs, does that means the B's won't have any roster/contract spots left to sign any NCAA free agents?
Would be nice to sign another Merkulov/McLaughlin-type for added depth.
 

cshea

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If Lohrei signs, does that means the B's won't have any roster/contract spots left to sign any NCAA free agents?
Would be nice to sign another Merkulov/McLaughlin-type for added depth.
It depends on the structure of how they sign him. They only have 1 NHL contract spot left for the rest of this year. So they can only add 1 player who can play in the NHL for the rest of this season. That doesn't necessarily mean they can only sign 1 player in total though.

For their own NCAA prospects they usually sign the player to an ATO to finish the current season in Providence with an ELC that begins the next year. Sometimes for the higher end guys they just sign the ATO for now to leave the door open to join the NHL team in case the need arises. This is what they did with McAvoy years ago and the need did arise so they signed his ELC immediately. They did the same thing with Beecher last year but never ended up needing him so they just signed teh NHL ELC right after the season ended. So if Lohrei, Kuntar and anyone else plan on coming soon it will likely be on an AHL PTO for the rest of this season and an ELC that starts next year. I could see Lohrei getting just the ATO and leaving their options open.

The undrafted free agent market is different. It really depends on the market for the player. If a player has multiple teams chasing them then an NHL contract and burning the first year off is somethign that can be offered to entice the player to sign. This is how they landed McLaughlin. However, if the market is cooler on a player they can go the ATO route with an ELC that starts the following year. They got that with Bussi and Merkulov last year.
 

The B’s Knees

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It depends on the structure of how they sign him. They only have 1 NHL contract spot left for the rest of this year. So they can only add 1 player who can play in the NHL for the rest of this season. That doesn't necessarily mean they can only sign 1 player in total though.

For their own NCAA prospects they usually sign the player to an ATO to finish the current season in Providence with an ELC that begins the next year. Sometimes for the higher end guys they just sign the ATO for now to leave the door open to join the NHL team in case the need arises. This is what they did with McAvoy years ago and the need did arise so they signed his ELC immediately. They did the same thing with Beecher last year but never ended up needing him so they just signed teh NHL ELC right after the season ended. So if Lohrei, Kuntar and anyone else plan on coming soon it will likely be on an AHL PTO for the rest of this season and an ELC that starts next year. I could see Lohrei getting just the ATO and leaving their options open.

The undrafted free agent market is different. It really depends on the market for the player. If a player has multiple teams chasing them then an NHL contract and burning the first year off is somethign that can be offered to entice the player to sign. This is how they landed McLaughlin. However, if the market is cooler on a player they can go the ATO route with an ELC that starts the following year. They got that with Bussi and Merkulov last year.
Good info as always, thanks!
 

cshea

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Elsewhere, Matthew Poitras is having a monster season. 16 goals and 79 assists in 63 games. The 79 assists is 2nd in the OHL and his 95 total points are good for 5th.

I try not to get too excited about the couting stats from the lower levels but those are pretty eye popping. I think more encouraging beyond the raw totals is the leap from 0.74 points per game in his draft eligible year to 1.51 points per game in his d+1 season. That's a pretty substantial increase. No idea if it's sustainable. I'd be curious to dig in a bit more and see if there's just a lot of empty calorie second assists here or if he's figured something out.
 

jsinger121

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Elsewhere, Matthew Poitras is having a monster season. 16 goals and 79 assists in 63 games. The 79 assists is 2nd in the OHL and his 95 total points are good for 5th.

I try not to get too excited about the couting stats from the lower levels but those are pretty eye popping. I think more encouraging beyond the raw totals is the leap from 0.74 points per game in his draft eligible year to 1.51 points per game in his d+1 season. That's a pretty substantial increase. No idea if it's sustainable. I'd be curious to dig in a bit more and see if there's just a lot of empty calorie second assists here or if he's figured something out.
Only 19 as well. He’s taken a massive jump this season.
 

jsinger121

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I saw Lohrei live this weekend. He’s legit. Big has speed, offensive ability as well. Word is Sweeney was in Bridgeport this weekend watching Lohrei.
 

jcaz

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Elsewhere, Matthew Poitras is having a monster season. 16 goals and 79 assists in 63 games. The 79 assists is 2nd in the OHL and his 95 total points are good for 5th.

I try not to get too excited about the couting stats from the lower levels but those are pretty eye popping. I think more encouraging beyond the raw totals is the leap from 0.74 points per game in his draft eligible year to 1.51 points per game in his d+1 season. That's a pretty substantial increase. No idea if it's sustainable. I'd be curious to dig in a bit more and see if there's just a lot of empty calorie second assists here or if he's figured something out.
Here's Poitras's game-by-game log for his current team - the Guelph Storm:

Guelph Storm – Official site of the Guelph Storm
 

jk333

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I try not to get too excited about the couting stats from the lower levels but those are pretty eye popping. I think more encouraging beyond the raw totals is the leap from 0.74 points per game in his draft eligible year to 1.51 points per game in his d+1 season. That's a pretty substantial increase. No idea if it's sustainable. I'd be curious to dig in a bit more and see if there's just a lot of empty calorie second assists here or if he's figured something out.
Definitely a good sign! Like you say, he may be a passenger or it may not play up at AHL but at least with those numbers there’s a chance!

Toporowski’s numbers pop a bit given the age and first AHL season. He’s a bottom 6 player but seems like he could be much better than you’d expect. Anyone seen him?
 

Scoops Bolling

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Only 19 as well. He’s taken a massive jump this season.
One of only two 2004 birthdays in the Top 10 in points, and he's dominating at the drop (58%) unlike Goyette. He's definitely popped above a number of the guys taken over him at this point.
 

Eddie Jurak

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Elsewhere, Matthew Poitras is having a monster season. 16 goals and 79 assists in 63 games. The 79 assists is 2nd in the OHL and his 95 total points are good for 5th.

I try not to get too excited about the couting stats from the lower levels but those are pretty eye popping. I think more encouraging beyond the raw totals is the leap from 0.74 points per game in his draft eligible year to 1.51 points per game in his d+1 season. That's a pretty substantial increase. No idea if it's sustainable. I'd be curious to dig in a bit more and see if there's just a lot of empty calorie second assists here or if he's figured something out.
One cautionary note: he actually regressed in terms of goal scoring: 21 goals in 68 games last year, 16 goals in 63 games this year, even as his assists surged.
 

RoDaddy

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With all the Bruin's excitement this year, it's also worth updating the Baby B’s for their good play as they recently won the Atlantic Division regular season. Georgii Merkulov led the team in scoring his rookie year (24 goals, 55 points) setting himself up as a decent prospect moving forward. Fabian Lysell had 14 goals and 23 assists in 54 games at only 19, then 20 years of age – which I assume is well below the average prospect age in the AHL (I’m guessing around 22-23 since AAA in baseball is 23-24 and baseball is a bit older sport). A good start for Fabian imo but obviously depends on how he builds moving forward. Team MVP Brandon Bussi was outstanding in goal and had a cup of coffee with the big club at the end of the season. Mason Lohrei had one assist in the 5 regular season games he played. As division champ, they start their playoffs in the second round this Friday.