The Bruins hold a single pick in the second round, slotted at No. 56. There’s still quality on the board — not franchise‑changers or blue‑chip talents, but legitimate NHL prospects — and Boston needs to stay committed to the approach they embraced last year: identify value and keep stacking quality.
The Bruins have selected with the 56th pick on 3 occasions, choosing Ryan Donato (2014), Matt Zultek (1999) and Todd Lalonde (1987). They held the 56th pick in 1980 but the Bruins traded it to the Atlanta Flames in a deal for Jim Craig.
Just a reminder, here is the breakdown of the ratings used:
Hockey IQ: This encompasses a wide range of traits — reading the play, vision, fin ding soft ice, understanding spacing, maintaining proper positioning (including defensively), making the right plays and more.
Skating: It’s not solely about straight‑line speed, though that’s part of the equation. The focus also falls on edgework, acceleration, stops and starts, first‑step quickness, mechanics, lateral mobility, backward skating, and overall fluidity.
Shot: This covers a player’s full shooting arsenal — power, release, deception, accuracy, and the ability to get pucks off cleanly under pressure.
Puck Moving: Despite the name, it’s about far more than simply transporting the puck up ice. It includes zone‑entry ability, passing touch, possession strength, transition efficiency, and making the right reads under pressure.
Compete: This reflects a player’s overall drive — intensity, forechecking pressure, board‑battle engagement, willingness to get to the dirty areas, involvement in scrums, commitment to defending with the same effort they bring offensively, relentlessness in puck pursuit, will do anything to win and consistency from shift to shift.
It’s time to dig into potential targets based on my own rankings. I’ve spoken with multiple scouts to gather their perspectives and cross‑checked those views against the consolidated lists that are out there. I’ve also included NHL Central Scouting’s numbers for context — even if I don’t always see eye‑to‑eye with them.
Let’s get to the list:
Berchild fits squarely into the small‑and‑skilled category. And as has been the trend for a few years now, independent scouting services barely factor size into their evaluations any longer. NHL Central Scouting, however, still treats it like a sticking point. One scout put it bluntly to me: “If we listened to Central Scouting all the time, we’d all be out of a job.”
Despite his size, he plays with zero hesitation — he’ll take on defenders one‑on‑one and drive straight to the net. He’s stronger than he looks, and while he’ll need to keep building that strength, it’s already an asset in his game. He’s creative with the puck, uses his teammates well, and he’s not just a rush‑only threat. He navigates the offensive zone with the poise of a far more experienced player, and he’s got a diverse shot arsenal that grades out above average. And he has an established 200-foot game.
This brings back shades of the 2016 draft discourse around Alex DeBrincat. The Bruins opted for the “safer” Trent Frederic, and we all know how that comparison aged. I’m not saying Berchild is destined to become DeBrincat — I’m saying you can’t dismiss him purely because of size. If the Bruins don’t at least give Berchild real consideration, then all the talk about moving away from last summer’s “piss and vinegar” identity toward the speed‑and‑skill model they emphasized after this season rings hollow. The catch, of course, is we’ll never truly know whether he was on their board.
Holmertz is a smart, playmaking, defensively reliable center out of the U20 Nationell. He’s a strong skater with good first‑step acceleration, though he doesn’t quite have that true top‑end gear. He’s not a natural play driver, which is why he may ultimately project better on the wing. What he does have is an excellent shot, and he’s at his most effective when paired with a puck distributor who can feed him in space.
One Swedish scout told me, “He’s a third‑rounder on my list. He doesn’t play with enough pace.” I’d take it a step further. There are shifts where he’s clearly gliding when he should be attacking, and he spends too much time on the perimeter despite having the size to get inside. Defensively, though, he’s ahead of the curve. He closes quickly, he’s positionally sound, and he uses his stick exceptionally well to break up plays.
I believe the flaws in his game are fixable with proper development, and that’s exactly why I’d be comfortable using this pick on him here. You could do far worse.
Nemec is the younger brother of New Jersey Devils defenseman Simon Nemec, so the bloodlines are there. He brings elite hockey sense to both sides of the puck, playing with real pace and a motor that never seems to dip. He’s a puck hound who pressures with intent, and he’s more than capable of winning physical battles once he gets on top of his man.
Nemec is a puck‑possession monster — not quite elite, but firmly in the high‑end tier. He drives transition with confidence and can gain the offensive zone, at times almost at will. His vision is good, not great; he can be forced into the wrong read under pressure. But give him time and space, and he distributes at a high level. He also brings a wealth of international experience for his age, which I put real value in. And before coming to North America and the OHL, he was already playing professional hockey — another important layer in his development path.
One scout pushed back on my view of his NHL upside, telling me, “I see him as a third‑line winger.” And sure, the line between a middle‑six player and a third‑liner is razor thin. Not everyone is going to see a prospect the same way — unless you’re talking about a true generational talent. That’s the beauty of the draft.
With the draft’s cutoff date of September 15 and Vandenberg born on September 8, he enters this class as one of its youngest eligible players. That context matters, because his production in the OHL isn’t just impressive — it’s the kind of resume that shouldn’t be minimized given how young he is relative to his peers.
Vandenberg plays with a sharp, intuitive feel on both sides of the puck. Even with a lankier frame, he doesn’t hesitate to lean into the physical game — there’s a noticeable edge to how he engages. Offensively, he blends playmaking vision with legitimate finishing touch, and his puck‑possession instincts stand out. He’s a plus skater, he gets to the interior, and he’s more than willing to dive into the forecheck and create chaos.
One scout put it to me this way: “He doesn’t have a single standout skill, but he’s solid across the board. For me, he’s an early second‑round pick.” I can’t argue with that, but I do wonder how much age should play in it.
The scouting community is divided on this one. As one NHL scout told me, “Our staff was split at our last meeting — our European guys are really high on him.”
The biggest question mark with Hoen is the limited sample size — he managed just nine games this season after tearing up the U20 Nationell as a 17‑year‑old a year ago. But every time I caught him, I came away impressed. He’ll need to add strength, no doubt, yet the foundation of a true power forward is already there.
Hoen is a smart, high‑volume shooter who moves well and is an impressive skater for his size. He processes the game quickly, finds soft ice, and consistently gets himself into shooting positions. He can also drive offense for his teammates when the play runs through him. His puck control still needs refinement and his game can run a bit hot‑and‑cold, but the talent is undeniable. I’m genuinely curious to see where he goes in the draft — and I love him at this spot.
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