Liam Pettersson – Vaxjo Lakers – U20 Nationell
Rumors continue to swirl around Pettersson’s future, with growing indications he won’t be signing with Vaxjo of the SHL and is instead eyeing a move to North America. He’s eligible for the CHL Import Draft, scheduled for late June or early July, adding another layer of intrigue to where he might land next.
Providence remains a possibility, but the Bruins rarely drop 19‑year‑old defensemen straight into the AHL. Their typical approach is to start defensemen that age with the ECHL’s Maine Mariners — Loke Johansson being a recent example of that development path.
Vashek Blanar – HV71 – U20 Nationell
Blanar has been named to the Czech U20 roster for an upcoming tournament featuring Czechia, Finland, Sweden, Switzerland, and Slovakia. The full schedule is listed below.
On Wednesday, HV71 remained undefeated at the U20 Nationell relegation round with a 5-4 win over Tingsryds AIF. Blanar assisted on a powerplay goal with 1 second remaining in the second period to put HV71 up 4-3. Tingsryds would tie it midway through the third but HV71 would win it with less than 4 minutes remaining. Blanar finished with an even plus/minus and 3 shots on goal.
On Saturday, HV71 defeated Grums IK 6-1. Blanar did not register a point and was a plus-1 on the day.
On Sunday, they closed out the relegation round with a 4-0 win over Vasteras IK and finished with 10 wins, one in a shootout and no losses. Blanar assisted on the opening goal and was a plus-1. Blanar finished the year with 7 goals and 13 assists in 40 games, almost exactly where me pre-season projections had him.
Kirill Yemelyanov – Loko Yaroslav – MHL
On Monday, Loko closed out the series with a 4–3 win over JHC Dynamo, completing a 3–0 sweep in the best‑of‑five. Yemelyanov added his third goal of the postseason — a shorthanded marker that pushed the lead to 3–1. After winning an offensive‑zone draw, he drove straight to the net, got a piece of a point shot that sailed high, then tracked the rebound off the end boards and was first to it, backhanding it into a half‑open cage. He finished the night plus‑2 with four shots on goal, went 6‑for‑11 on draws, and logged 15:58 of ice time.
William Zellers, – University of North Dakota
The season came to an end on Thursday as North Dakota lost 2-1 to Wisconsin at the NCAA Frozen Four. Zellers did not register a point in the loss. He had two shots on goal during 18:50 time on ice. You couldn’t ask for a better freshman year from Zellers as he close out the year with 18 goals and 16 assists in 38 games.
James Hagens, Oskar Jellvik, Andre Gasseau, Dean Letourneau, Kristian Kostadinski, Will Moore – Boston College
James Hagens was named to the First Team All-American squad.
Nothing new on the Gasseau front except the reports that are already out there.
Also, nothing new on the Jellvik front.
Chris Pelosi, Elliott Groenewold – Quinnipiac University
The accolades keep stacking up for Elliott Groenewold. On Tuesday, the defenseman added another line to his resume, earning a spot on the New England All‑Star Team as selected by the New England Hockey Writers Association.
I am still in disbelief that Pelosi is returning to Quinnipiac instead of turning pro with the roster spots available in Providence next season.
Beckett Hendrickson – University of Minnesota
Still hoping Hendrickson enters the transfer portal and that could come this week.
Mason Langenbrunner – Harvard University
No indication of the Bruins or Langenbrunner’s intentions.
Casper Nassen – Miami (Ohio)
Casper Nassen has entered the transfer portal.
Philip Svedeback – Providence College
Also, no indication from the Bruins or Svedeback on intentions here.
Cooper Simpson – Youngstown – USHL
Youngstown will face Madison in a best of five series. The first two games are at home on April 12 and 18. The next two games are in Madison on April 24 and 25 if necessary. Game five is at home, if necessary, on April 28.
Cole Chandler – Shawinigan – QMJHL
For the first time in the series, home ice finally mattered. Shawinigan rolled past Sherbrooke 6–1 to close out the matchup in seven games. Cole Chandler did not dress.
Shawinigan opened their second round series against Rouyn-Noranda on the road and dropped the opener by a score of 8-3. Chandler did not dress.
It was a little closer on Saturday but Rouyn-Noranda took a 2-0 series lead over Shawinigan with a 6-5 overtime victory. Still no sign of Cole Chandler as he missed his third consecutive game.
Providence Bruins
Providence 4 – Hartford 1
Frederic Brunet jumped back into the lineup and wasted no time making his presence felt. Just 7:45 into the opening period, he recognized an opening and jumped up to support John Farinacci on the rush. When Farinacci lost his footing, Brunet scooped up the loose puck and sliced through the slot, finishing with a slick backhand‑to‑forehand move that beat the goaltender past the right pad. Christian Wolanin picked up the secondary assist on the play.
Georgii Merkulov doubled the lead with a power‑play strike just 2:36 into the second period. Stationed in the right circle, he fired a cross‑ice pass to Wolanin in the opposite circle, who immediately sent it back for Merkulov to hammer home a one‑timer and make it 2–0. Lukas Reichel picked up the secondary assist on the sequence.
Farinacci pushed the lead to 3–0 with 2:13 left in the second period. Brunet went coast‑to‑coast and rang a shot off the post, and the rebound kicked straight into the slot, where Farinacci was waiting with a wide‑open net to bury it. Joey Abate earned the secondary assist on the play.
Hartford cut into the lead with 3:29 to go, but Jake Schmaltz sealed it late, jumping on a loose puck and firing it into the empty net with four seconds remaining to close out the scoring.
Michael DiPietro turned in a sharp performance, stopping 23 of the 24 shots he faced — including a couple of highlight‑reel saves — while Providence generated 27 shots at the other end.
Providence 6 – Rochester 3
Midway through the opening period, Wolanin teed up Merkulov in the right circle, and Merkulov snapped a wrist shot that slipped under the goaltender’s pad for a power‑play marker, giving Providence a 1–0 lead. Patrick Brown picked up the secondary assist.
With 5:34 left in the opening frame, Fabian Lysell announced his return from a concussion in emphatic fashion. He picked off a pass at his own blue line, turned on the jets, and broke in alone before lifting a deft chip shot over the goaltender’s glove to stretch the lead to 2–0.
Just 59 seconds later, Rochester would get one back.
With 7:56 left in the second period, Wolanin’s shot from the right circle was turned aside, but the rebound kicked straight into the slot, where Matej Blumel buried it into a wide‑open net to restore Providence’s two‑goal cushion. Riley Tufte also picked up an assist.
Just 56 seconds later, Lysell struck again. Merkulov dropped a pass to him in the slot, and the winger glided to the top of the crease, toe‑dragging a defender before slipping a shot under the goaltender’s arm to make it 4–1. Brunet added an assist on the highlight‑reel finish.
With 7:12 remaining in the third, Rochester clawed back to within two. But just 50 seconds later, Tufte sprung Brown in alone, and the veteran calmly beat the goaltender on the glove side to restore the three‑goal cushion. Blumel picked up an assist on the insurance marker.
Riley Duran scored into an empty net with Joey Abate and Jake Schmaltz picking up assists. Rochester would get one more to close out the scoring.
Simon Zajicek stopped 21 of 24 shots for the win while Providence fired 44 shots the other way.
It was Providence’s 53rd win of the season, tying the AHL record for most wins in a 72-game season.
Providence 1 – Springfield 0
The game remained scoreless until 11:29 into the third, when Blumel tossed a puck toward the net and Tufte managed to get a stick on it, redirecting it home for the night’s lone goal. Billy Sweezey picked up the secondary assist on the decisive play.
DiPietro stopped all 20 shots he faced for the shutout and led Providence all season long towards capturing the MacGregor Kilpatrick Trophy as the top regular season team.
Here’s a look at the Providence Bruins leaders. You will notice a column called “Benchrates” This is provided by our friends at Benchrates. Created by a retired hockey player, Benchrates has created an algorithm that computes values in real time. The value you see is the cap hit value they’ve earned this season to date. Give them a look and check out their site.
Coming up this week:
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