Getting to Know Dean Letourneau

With the 25^th overall pick at the 2024 NHL Entry Draft, the Boston Bruins selected 6’7” center Dean Letourneau from St Andrew’s College. Letourneau is committed to Boston College for the 2024-2015 season and the Bruins will hold his rights until August 15, 2028.

Season	Team	League	GP	G	A	PTS	PIM
2021/22	Renfrew Wolves	HEO U18	32	18	17	35	12
2022/23	St Andrew’s College	CAHS	53	25	40	65	52
	St Andrew’s College	PHC	14	7	6	13	4
2023/24	St Andrew’s College	PHC	14	14	11	25	6
	St Andrew’s College	AAA U18	56	61	66	127	74
	Sioux Falls Stampede	USHL	2	0	0	0	2

Two important points must be considered regarding this selection. Firstly, according to many, Letourneau’s experience at St. Andrew’s College means he has not faced strong competition, making it difficult to assess his abilities.

While there may be some truth to that, St Andrew’s does an excellent job preparing players for the next level. One NHL scout told me “They aren’t at the level of Shattuck-St Mary’s but they are moving in that direction.”

The second item up for debate is whether this was a reach. Sure, you can look at all the public rankings and maybe draw that conclusion but most of those rankings would also tell you that 20-25 could go in countless different orders.

Cole Beaudoin was my preferred selection from my wish list, He was on the board with the 24^th pick, but Utah moved up to select him. He was available at the 24th pick, but Utah traded up to choose him instead. Bob Wetick and Jeff Barratt, the Bruins Ontario Scouts, would have observed both players extensively. General Manager Don Sweeney also went to see him personally.

Letourneau is relatively raw but shows promise as a top 3 or 4 talents in Ontario in this draft class. His size, reach, and athleticism make him difficult to outmaneuver on the ice. When he focuses on heading towards the net, he becomes unstoppable.

Letourneau does not rely on physicality or toughness. He possesses excellent puck skills and with a shot that makes him capable of scoring from anywhere in the offensive zone. He also has the vision and passing abilities to make him an effective playmaker.

There are certainly questions being raised about his skating. Technically, he is sound, unbeatable strength on his blades, has some speed with excellent edgework and high-level crossovers. He has put in the necessary work over the last year to improve his stride and add power.

One of the issues I brought up in my draft preview is that the Bruins, given their lack of depth in their prospect pool, had to be certain that if they drafted a player going the NCAA route, they needed to be certain he wasn’t going to be four years away. Letourneau will not. In fact, many are suggesting he could be one and done in college.

The compete level is an issue. And maybe the fact he was playing at a lower level where he could get by on skill alone had something to do with that. He’s going to have to raise the intensity level and when he does, he can dominate.

SKATING	SHOT	SKILLS	IQ	PHYSICALITY	COMPETE
6.5	6.5	7	6.5	5	5