After sitting out the first three games of the KHL season, Roman Bychkov got into his first game for Lokomotiv but the result was the same. A 5-0 loss to HC Sochi. Bychkov finished with zero points, a minus-2, two hits and no blocked shots. Here’s a stat the KHL makes available that I wish other leagues would: Bychkov’s average speed was 17.75 kph – tops among defenders – and a top speed of 31.25 kph. Being the fastest skater isn’t always the best thing, especially for a defenceman. Watching the game, you could see he was constantly chasing and his average speed points to that. Probably one of the reasons he was scratched for the next game on Tuesday.
The SHL regular season began Thursday with Jonathan Myrenberg taking the ice for Linkoping HC as they defeated HV71 3-2 in a shootout. Myrenberg came into the season after appearing in 7 preseason games and registering 4 assists and a plus 3 in those games in just under 16:00 ATOI. He was not on the ice for a 5v5 goal against in the preseason. Myrenberg had 15 games of SHL experience back in 2021-2022 as an 18-year-old to get his feet wet. Thursday, his defensive position, puck retrieval and transition were all excellent in just over 15:00 TOI. He finished with a plus-1 with one shot on goal. The fact that the Bruins were able to obtain him along with Michael DiPietro for Jack Studnicka from the Vancouver Canucks to me, is a very underrated move by the Bruins.
On Friday, the Bruins prospects took on the Pittsburgh Penguins prospects and came out with a 4-2 victory. Luke Toporowski and Brett Harrison each had a pair of goals while Matthew Poitras was all over the puck at both ends of the ice. Put them in any order and you can’t go wrong for your three stars. I’m not going to break down the entire game but here’s a little on Frederic Brunet. The Bruins have to sign him. No, he hasn’t done anything against pros yet, but you could definitely see the skating, defensive awareness (at times), vision he possesses and playmaking skills. He got top PP duties over Mason Lohrei and he looked much calmer and effective on the point than Lohrei did.
On Saturday, Myrenberg’s Linkoping squad remained undefeated in early SHL action with a 4-1 victory over Oskarshamn. While Myrenberg did not factor in the scoring and he only had 11:58 TOI, his poise, patience and skating continue to stand out.
Also on Saturday, Frolunda HC was looking to start the J20 Nationell season 6-0. An error by Kristian Kostadinski and then a costly penalty put HV71 up 2-0. Frolunda would pull to within one but HV71 added 2 goals 32 seconds apart to pull out a 4-1 win. Kostadinski finished a minus-2 while Casper Nassen had his 3-game point streak come to an end. I should have pointed this out last week but better late then never: Kostadinski has been named Captain of his squad.
In the Prospects Challenge match on Saturday, the Bruins lost 4-1 to the Montreal Canadiens. Trevor Kuntar, who I’ve said many times here is one of my favorite prospects scored the lone goal for the Bruins on a wicked backhander. His tenacity and puck pursuit will make him a favorite. John Farinacci, a natural center who played on the right-side Friday before moving back to the middle on Saturday was actually better on Friday, although his skill set was evident in both games. Poitras moved into Farinacci’s spot on the right and didn’t miss a beat. The issue here is that the Bruins are going to have to find time for both of them down the middle. Unless Poitras makes the big club out of camp, he is headed back to the Guelph Storm of the OHL so, they have time to figure it out. As for Brunet, his skills as an offensive defenceman were on display again. Defensively, he wasn’t as good as Friday showing a couple of lapses. It’s all about pro coaching now. I have to say this about Fabian Lysell: You have to be impressed by the skill set he displays. He will be more dangerous when he starts using his teammates more often. He can’t continuously do it on his own.
After opening the season with 5 victories, Frolunda HC dropped their second consecutive game on Sunday by a 4-2 margin against Orebro HK. After scoring 2 goals and 3 assists in 3 games, Nassen has gone two in a row without a point in the two losses. Kostadinski ended a 5-game pointless streak with a helper. But over the last couple of games, it’s the unnecessary and sometimes costly penalties that have been a concern.
Coming up this week:
| PLAYER | M – 18 | T – 19 | W – 20 | T – 21 | F – 22 | S – 23 | S – 24 |
| NASSEN/KOSTADINSKI | At VIK | At VIK | At SIK | ||||
| MYRENBERG | A MOD | V LEK | |||||
| BYCHKOV | At CSK | At DIN | Vs CSK | ||||
| JELLVIK/GASSEAU | |||||||
| LOCMELIS | |||||||
| WALSH | |||||||
| LANGENBRUNNER | |||||||
| SPICER/OLSON | |||||||
| SCHMALTZ | |||||||
| DURAN/SVEDEBACK | |||||||
| GALLAGHER | |||||||
| POITRAS | + vs NJ | * BFD | * BFD | ||||
| EDWARD | + vs NJ | * ERIE | * ERIE | ||||
| HENDRICKSON/PELOSI | At C R | Vs T-C | |||||
| DYCK | *A LET | *V LET |
+ Prospects Challenge * Exhibition game (It’s likely Poitras and Edward will still be at Bruins rookie camp and will not be playing in these games).
AROUND THE GLOBE
WHO’S HOT:
No one really.
WHO’S WARM:
He’s aged out to be considered a prospect by my standards, but worth mentioning that Andrei Svetlakov, who the Bruins acquired from the Minnesota Wild in the 3-way trade that brought Dmitri Orlov and Garnet Hathaway to Boston has 1 goal and 3 assists in 7 games to start the KHL season.
WHO’S COLD:
Roman Bychkov has been a healthy scratch in 4 of 5 games for Lokomotiv of the KHL.
With under 2 minutes remaining in the loss to Sioux City, Sioux Falls’ Chris Pelosi was ejected for hitting from behind. He finished the preseason with zero points and a minus-1 in 3 games.
Beckett Hendrickson finished the preseason with zero points and an even plus/minus in 4 games.
Reid Dyck has missed all of the Swift Current Broncos training camp and Bruins Rookie Camp with what the Broncos are calling a lower body injury. Mark Divver reports it as a hamstring injury and that he could miss 4 weeks.
After recording two assists for Frolunda HC in the season opener, Kristian Kostadinski went pointless in the next five games before adding an assist on Sunday.
Dom - Hockey 