WITH BOSTON’S ROSTER SET, A BATTLE IS BRUIN IN PROVIDENCE

With the Boston Bruins roster almost set in stone on free agent frenzy, the only real battles were on the fourth line and thirteenth forward positions and who was going to be waived for possible assignment to the Providence Bruins of the AHL.

All those questions were answered at 5:00 pm Monday when the Bruins submitted their 23-man roster to the National Hockey League.

That has created quite the battle in Providence where they have eyes locked onto a championship run. There is an abundance of players on AHL only deals looking for NHL contracts but also a number of Maine Mariners, the Bruins ECHL affiliate, on ECHL contracts looking to take the next step.

With goaltenders Callum Booth and Jeremy Brodeur being sent to Maine, it appears the only position pretty much locked up is in the crease where Kyle Keyser and Troy Grosenick will share responsibilities of guarding the blue paint.

The battle for the blue line is where it gets interesting. Jack Ahcan, Brady Lyle, Urho Vaakanainen, Tyler Lewington, Nick Wolff and Victor Berglund are all under NHL contracts with Boston. Berglund has been injured throughout camp but skated with the P-Bruins yesterday in a red no-contact jersey and appears close to a return.

Aaron Ness, Andrew Peski, Jack Dougherty, J.D. Greenway (injured) and Josiah Didier (injured) are there on AHL deals with the P-Bruins. Michael Kim remains at camp and is under contract with Maine. Connor Doherty was also at camp but has since been returned to Maine.

And let’s not forget John Moore who Boston placed on waivers and he subsequently cleared. Boston has 30 days or until he plays in 10 NHL games to send him to Providence or he would need to clear waivers again.

Up front, there aren’t as many extra bodies as there are on the back end, but the battle is just as interesting if not more interesting. It begins with Chris Wagner who just cleared waivers and was assigned to Providence on Monday. Will he be here for the duration of the season? What role will he have on the squad? Could he wear a letter? Those answers will come in due time, but for now he is a P-Bruins.

The other intriguing forward is center Jack Studnicka. He had a terrific camp with Boston and all indications are that he will be the first forward called upon if there is an injury up front with the Big Club.

 Jakub Lauko, Jesper Froden, Cameron Hughes, Oskar Steen, Zach Senyshyn, Samuel Asselin, Curtis Hall, Matt Filipe, Joona Koppanen and Steve Fogarty join Wagner and Studnicka at camp as forwards with NHL contracts. That brings the forward group with NHL contracts at camp to twelve.

Joining them for the battle are Alex-Olivier Voyer, Justin Brazeau, Ian McKinnon and Eduards Tralmaks, who are on AHL contracts with Providence. That brings the forward group to sixteen.

There was also a group of Maine forwards taking part in camp but have since been returned to the Mariners. They were: Jonathan Desbiens, Pascal Laberge, Lewis Zerter-Gossage and Keltie Jeri-Leon.

What are the lines going to look like? Your guess is as good as mine, but this has the makings of a team capable of going on a very deep playoff run and possibly winning it all. But if you asked me to take a guess, it would probably look something like this:

Lauko – Studnicka – Froden

Hughes – Steen – Senyshyn

Asselin – Hall – Fogarty

Filipe – Koppanen – Wagner

Leaving Voyer, Brazeau, McKinnon and Tralmaks as extra forwards.

On the blue line:

Ahcan – Lyle

Vaakanainen – Lewington

Ness – Peski

Leaving Wolff and Dougherty as extras. And of course, the injured Berglund, Greenway and Didier will need to fit in at some point.

And of course in net you have Grosenick and Keyser.

What also needs to be kept in mind is the AHL veteran rule.

The rule requires teams to dress a maximum of five veteran players (excluding goaltenders) in a game. The CBA defines veterans as players who have played more than 320 NHL, AHL or elite-level European regular-season games. Teams may also dress one “veteran-exempt” player (between 261-320 NHL, AHL or high-level European regular-season contests).

But the P-Bruins have no worries there.

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BRUINS ANNOUNCE THEIR 23-MAN ROSTER

Today is Thanksgiving Day in Canada so a Happy Thanksgiving to those that have found some time away from the Turkey to take the time to read.

It also is the day that all 32 National Hockey League franchises must submit their 23-man rosters to the League. Those rosters are due by 5:00 PM Eastern Time. That doesn’t necessarily mean those 23 players will be on the opening night squad. In the case of the Boston Bruins, Chris Wagner and John Moore, who both cleared waivers on Sunday, could find themselves on the roster opening night but would mean the Bruins would have to make two other moves to open up spots for them.

It should come as no surprise who the top 9 forwards and the top 6 defenders are. They were cast in stone on free agent frenzy. As too was two-thirds of the fourth line with the off season signing of Thomas Nosek and the returning Curtis Lazar.

The only questions remaining were: who was going to be the 12th and 13th forwards and who was going to be the 7th defenseman, and would General Manager Don Sweeney stray away from his liking to carry 8 blueliners?

Trent Frederic was given every opportunity to be the third cog in the wheel with Lazar and Nosek but he was in a battle with Anton Blidh, Karson Kuhlman and Jack Studnicka, with Studnicka being the only one that does not require waivers. However, an injury to Lazar has put a damper on things.

By the time 2:00 PM Sunday rolled around – the last chance to put players on waivers who wouldn’t be on the 23-man roster – it was pretty much set that one or both of Moore and Wagner would be sent to Providence or one of them would remain on the roster and Studnicka sent to Providence and Blidh and Kuhlman would be on the roster.  

The injury to Lazar however allowed the Bruins to place him on Injured Reserve, opening up a spot on the 23-man roster and that allowed the team to keep Moore on the roster for now and giving Sweeney his 8 defensemen and send Studnicka to Providence.

Once Lazar is cleared, the Bruins will have to send a body to the P-Bruins to get to the 23-man roster limit, that is of course if there are no further injuries.

Here’s a look at the 23-man roster and the cap implications. You must remember that the cap is calculated daily and that every subsequent move made throughout the season affects everything from cap hit, to projected cap space to deadline cap space. The latter is the total AAV that can be added at trade deadline and remain cap compliant at the end of the season.

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BOSTON BRUINS MONDAY MORNING PROSPECTS UPDATE WEEK ENDING: October 10, 2022

The time has arrived! Each and every Boston Bruins prospect not playing in the AHL or ECHL have begun their 2021-2022 season as the NCAA and OHL got into full swing last week. That is except for one. John Beecher will miss four weeks for the Michigan Wolverines with an upper body injury, which is not related to the shoulder in which he had surgery on earlier this year according to the team.

Friday’s season opener was the Wolverines’ 3000th game in their history and Beecher would have loved to have been a part of that.

Beecher wasn’t the only prospect to miss time with an injury. Fabian Lysell, the Bruins top prospect and first round pick at the 2021 NHL Entry Draft missed the Vancouver Giants home opener on Friday. The Giants officially list Lysell as day-to-day with an upper body injury after a harmless collision with an opponent sent both players to the bench very late in the contest and did not see another shift in the game.  

This week, my focus is on Mason Lohrei, but beware, I am beginning with a rant.

When the Bruins selected Lohrei with the 58th pick at the 2020 NHL Entry Draft, I really had no opinion on the pick. I was alright with it. There was however, a segment of the Bruins fandom that were not thrilled at all. “Why would they use a second-round pick on an older guy who wasn’t picked last year?” was the sentiment on Twitter and chat boards at the time.

In his draft plus one year, Lohrei had a phenomenal season with the Green Bay Gamblers of the USHL scoring 19 goals and 40 assists and finishing a plus-24 in just 48 games.

The small group of fans who a summer earlier were questioning selecting an “overager” had now turned their focus to “he’s doing it against kids. He should be in the NCAA.” As condescending as this may sound, it needs to be said – “some of the fans making those comments have no idea how the USHL works, what type of league it is and they have no understanding of NCAA scholarships and how they work.”

Those of you that know me know that my focus is covering the OHL and have been following the league since the early 1970’s. I have also been on record for at least three years now saying the USHL is the best development league in the world. I have also gone to great lengths to explain why I believe that. I am confident Lohrei was in a good situation with Green Bay.

I have also been forced into debates when someone says “well he wouldn’t put up those kinds of points in the CHL”. That statement could be 100% accurate or it could just as easily be 100% inaccurate. The fact of the matter is we will never know. Both leagues come with their pros and cons but to say something as 100% certainty with no way of ever being able to prove it is just, well, asinine.

This is limited to just a handful of people, but there are those that hope a player fails. In the last year and a half, I have received 4 messages that use some form of the phrase “I hope he busts just so I can tell you ‘I told you so.’” It’s sad that something like that exists but one must also remember that when they say something on the internet, it is there forever – and I will never forget. I will never being able to understand who a Bruins fan can not just cheer on a prospect, no matter where they are playing.

/End rant

Lohrei opened up his NCAA career with a goal and followed that up with a helper in his second game. As you can see in the tweet by my good friend @BruinsNetwork Lohrei possesses the instincts, patience, hockey IQ and vision to be an offensive force. This wasn’t against “16- and 17-year-old” players.

Here is what one independent scouting service had to say about Lohrei for the 2020 draft after not including him at all it 2019:

Lohrei possesses decent skating agility for a big kid. He can cover a lot of ice east-west in a defensive posture using his feet and reach. Needs to continue to work on his awareness in his own zone, and for a defenseman his size, is not hard to play against and needs to develop more sandpaper in his game. In too many viewings Lohrei got out worked in front of his own net and didn’t make things hard enough for his opponents. His play in his own zone is what is keeping him from being a higher caliber prospect at this stage. His first few strides need to continue to develop but as he continues to fill out, he should add some explosiveness to his skating going forward. Lohrei is a smart puck moving defenseman who plays within his skill set very well and doesn’t try to do things he isn’t capable of. Mason uses good vision and accurate passing coming out of his own end and looks to stretch the ice and connect with home run passes when they are available. Mason has good puck protection abilities but is susceptible of getting pressured from behind on the breakout so his footspeed is a red flag and will need to improve before he can be considered a legitimate NHL prospect. In the offensive zone Lohrei works the top of the umbrella well on the power play and does a good job switching and getting into a shooting position with regularity. Shows good vision of the offensive zone and can quickly identify and get pucks through lanes but doesn’t do a lot to open things up on his own from the point position.

I’m going to focus on the skating here for two reasons: 1) since Lohrei was drafted, there have been a few prospect scribes questioning his skating and, 2) because some fans don’t see it. So, I took it upon myself to ask two skating coaches to break down his skating using both video and still photos.

Both agreed that Lohrei is a fine skater, but could use some adjustment to his technique. Both coaches looked to his Ankle Dorsiflexion as an issue. It’s an issue easily solved by trying a different skate or by loosening how tight he ties the top two eyelets on his boot. Trust me, I too had to look up the details of Ankle Dorsiflexion and you can read about that here.

The only other issue the pair brought up about Lohrei’s skating is that he could generate more power, speed and strength by using the “Sit Down” position in his skating. In many of the videos they watched, Lohrei was too upright at times. Both agreed that as a hockey player, Lohrei is an above average skater but with some minor tweaks he could become even better.

For now, I will leave it at this and will do a further breakdown as the season progresses.

Around the globe

Who’s hot:

After going pointless in his first 3 games, Oskar Jellvik is on a 4-game point streak. Mason Lohrei has a point in each of his first two NCAA games. Andre Gasseau has 4 goals in 3 games. Jake Schmaltz with 3 goals and an assist in his first two college games becomes the first freshman to score in his first two games since Drew Stafford accomplished it during the 2003-2004 season.

Who’s warm:

The once sizzling hot Peter Cehlarik is pointless in 2 consecutive games.

Who’s cold:

Through 9 games, Roman Bychkov has yet to register a point. Ditto for Linus Arnesson through 8 games. Matias Mantykivi is pointless in his last 5 games. Jack Becker opened up the season with 2 goals and an assist and is pointless in his last 3 games. Slow start for Brett Harrison with one helper in 2 games.

Finally, here is something new for you. On a scale from one to five, what are the chances of any of these players ever lacing up the skates for your Boston Bruins. This is of course a subjective list and not everyone is going to agree. What is taken into consideration here is: the player’s development curve to date, what he is projected to become, the player’s age and where he is playing, communicating with people in the game and most importantly, how he fits in the Bruins depth chart.

A low score doesn’t necessarily mean that player won’t play in the NHL, it means it may not be with the Bruins particularly because of depth at that position. Of course, as time moves forward, this list will change.

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BRUINS PLACE JOHN MOORE AND CHRIS WAGNER ON WAIVERS

Today, Bruins General Manager did what some thought he didn’t have the balls to do. He placed defenseman John Moore and right-wing Chris Wagner on waivers.

Teams now have 24 hours (2:00 pm Sunday) to put in a claim. The 23-man rosters must be submitted to the league by 5:00 pm Monday. There are options for the Bruins here if both players go unclaimed. They could send one or both to Providence, or they could keep one or both with the big club for 30 days or they play in 10 games. They could, at any point in that time send one or both to Providence without having them go through the waiver process a second time.

One of my first articles here was the affect it would have on the Bruins cap if Wagner were sent to Providence. So, how does this affect the Bruins cap going forward.

Let’s assume for a moment that neither player gets claimed in the waiver process. The Bruins could send the pair to Providence and get a cap relief of $1,125,000 per player. The remainder of their cap hits would count as buried cap hit.

Here’s how that looks:

As you can see, the Bruins cap space jumps from about $1.6 million to just over $3.1 million. But more importantly, their deadline cap space jumps to $14,880,758. That means they can add AAV’s totaling that amount at trade deadline. For you dreamers out there, yes, they could then add Jack Eichel.

Of course, there are other scenarios that could happen which greatly affects the numbers like both getting claimed. But we won’t bore you with all the numbers. What it does do is open up a roster spot on the 23-man roster for Jack Studnicka or Karson Kuhlman. Or Sweeney sticks true to his belief in carrying 8 defensemen and adds Urho Vaakanainen to the club.

In the end, whichever way they decide to go, and whatever happens, the Bruins have opened up even more cap flexibility over other contenders (yes, I know some of you don’t believe they are contenders) than they already held.

And that brings with it some maneuverability.

A LOOK AT THE BRUINS BLUELINE FOLLOWING THEIR EXHIBITION SCHEDULE

Prior to the 2020-2021 season, the questions surrounding the Bruins blueline was “who is going to replace Zdeno Chara and Torey Krug?” As it turns out, the defensemen held their own, especially with the injury plagued season and it was well above average after the arrival of Mike Reilly at trade deadline.

Enter the 2021-2022 season and the question remains the same – only the names have changed. Who is going to replace Kevan Miller and Jeremy Lauzon, especially on the penalty kill and toughness department?

Well, it may be a small sample size – being just 6 exhibition games so it’s hard to decipher anything really. But for the sake of argument, we will just look at the numbers.

Charlie McAvoy and Matt Grzelcyk have always been analytic darlings when paired together. As they should be. It is surprising to see that McAvoy’s and Grzelcyk’s numbers are actually better when they are apart. In fairness to them, those numbers come by playing just 7:30 in even strength time together. So, like I said, small sample size.

TOICF%FF%GF%xGF%HDCF%HDGF%PDO
McAvoyWithGrzelcyk7:3061.5458.33100.0051.7950.000.001.000
McAvoyw/outGrzelcyk38:4261.1161.7666.0262.5062.500.001.000
Grzelcykw/outMcAvoy40:5866.1065.3850.0074.2660.0050.000.970

McAvoy’s most regular partner through the exhibition schedule has been offseason free agent signee Derek Forbort. It may come as a surprise, maybe even a shock, to see that both players actually do better when not paired together. But let me repeat myself: small sample size.

TOICF%FF%GF%xGF%HDCF%HDGF%PDO
McAvoyWithForbort33:0458.5460.710.0067.1366.670.001.000
McAvoyW/outForbort13:0765.3861.11100.0055.1350.000.001.111
ForbortW/outMcAvoy10:4678.5778.57100.0094.31100.001.001.167
             

 As for Grzelcyk, the idea is to have him rotate between Connor Clifton and McAvoy, depending on game situation and opponent. But the pair only played 10:43 together 5vs5. Are you ready for this? The pair were actually better when apart in most statistics. Yet again, small sample size.

TOICF%FF%GF%xGF%HDCF%HDGF%PDO
GrzelcykWithClifton10:4342.1142.1150.0064.6957.1450.001.024
Grzelcykw/outClifton37.4573.5873.330.0074.2360.000.001.000
Cliftonw/outGrzelcyk62:0055.1357.14100.0064.8755.56100.001.120

Another pair that played well together last season was Reilly with Brandon Carlo – that is, when Carlo wasn’t injured.  And through training camp and in some exhibition games, they have almost been glued at the waist. But once again, their analytics are better apart than together for the most part.

TOICF%FF%GF%xGF%HDCF%HDGF%PDO
ReillyWithCarlo24:0455.2654.2933.3350.7522.220.000.890
Reillyw/outCarlo21.5260.9857.14100.0066.6770.00100.001.154
Carlow/outReilly19:2873.6871.430.000.1533.330.001.000

What does this tell us? Not much really. It doesn’t take into consideration things such as quality of competition, who the opponent was and what type of lineup they used that night. So, it shouldn’t be a going concern. But, if the trend continues once the puck drops a week from Saturday and the games actually have some meaning, then it may be time to reconsider how the pairs line up.

You may be asking yourself why I am wasting my time with this. Well, the answer is an easy one. Someone somewhere will eventually quote the analytics and say this defenseman should not be paired with that defenseman because the analytics say they aren’t a good match. I just wanted to get ahead of it personally.

Of course, there will be those that completely disagree, and they have a right to do so. All I ask is that everyone use their own judgement and the information in front of them.

Here’s a look at most of the defensemen that took part in exhibition games and their stats regardless of who they were paired with. Big thanks to Natural Stat Trick for the wonderful work that they do:

TOICF%FF%GF%xGF%HDCF%HDGF%PDO
McAvoy46:2161.1960.87100.0062.5360.000.001.043
Carlo43:3361.4059.1833.3356.2125.000.000.914
Reilly45:5758.2355.5660.0058.0147.3733.331.020
Grzelcyk48:1965.2864.0650.0070.4958.8250.000.979
Clifton62:4352.5853.6680.0064.8256.0080.001.093
Forbort43:4963.6466.67100.0075.9477.78100.001.050
Moore36:4560.7168.4266.6769.0071.4366.670.944
Lyle32:1962.7565.850.0062.1066.670.000.727
Ahcan32:3441.1841.670.0062.0955.560.001.000
Zboril40:3960.0061.36100.0065.5572.73100.001.118
Wolff25:2852.4957.690.000.9044.440.001.000
Vaakanainen30:2839.5842.860.000.8144.440.000.786

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BRUINS DOWN TO THE NITTY GRITTY AT TRAINING CAMP

The Boston Bruins have sent several players to Providence over the last couple of days and the starting lineup is almost completed.

As it stands now, here is the projected opening night roster:

Marchand-Bergeron-Pastrnak

Hall-Coyle-Smith

DeBrusk-Haula-Foligno

Frederic-Nosek-Lazar

Forbort-McAvoy

Reilly-Carlo

Grzelcyk-Clifton

Ullmark

Swayman

Troy Grosenick is still at Bruins camp, but he is not going to supplant Swayman or Ullmark in the crease and will eventually be placed on the waiver wire.

The Bruins like to carry eight defensemen and after the starting six, John Moore, Jakub Zboril and Urho Vaakanainen remain at camp. Vaakanainen is the only one that does not require waivers and for that reason is the likeliest candidate to head to Providence so that the Bruins can maintain some depth when the inevitable injury bug hits.

Up front is where General Manager Don Sweeney and Head Coach Bruce Cassidy have the toughest decision to make. Still participating at camp are: Jack Studnicka, Anton Blidh, Karson Kuhlman and Chris Wagner with Studnicka being the only one that does not require waivers. The one that sticks with the big club will likely be the 13th forward. But if the Bruins do keep 8 defensemen, then three of the four have to go to Providence.

Studnicka has done everything possible to show that he belongs in the NHL but Cassidy has hinted that for Captain Jack, it has to be in the top-9. He has outplayed the other three throughout camp. Some will argue that it’s better to play top minutes in the AHL than to be a healthy scratch waiting for an injury to get on the ice. Others will argue that being around the NHL club watching and learning is also good for his development.

The vast majority of fans do not want to think about the business side of the game. Unfortunatley, when these decisions need to be made, it plays a huge role. As stated earlier, Studnicka is the only one of the four that does not need waivers where the other three will require passing through waivers. It’s quite possible you could lose one, two or three of them (highly unlikely) but it is a conversation management has to have. And what happens to the team’s depth?

Studnicka could go to Providence and be the first player called up in the event of an injury. The 13th forward doesn’t automatically go into the lineup. But when the Bruins signed Erik Haula, Nick Foligno, Thomas Nosek and extended Taylor Hall, the lineup was pretty much written.

Studnicka just made them think long and hard.

BRUINS MAKE CAMP CUTS

The Boston Bruins made moves to reduce their camp to a more manageable roster yesterday and getting closer to finalizing their opening night roster.

Tuesday began with placing Joona Koppanen, Cameron Hughes and Tyler Lewington on waivers. NHL teams have until 2:00 PM Wednesday to put in a claim. Those moves were then followed by sending Kyle Keyser, Nick Wolff, Samuel Asselin and Curtis Hall to the Providence Bruins.

Along with the 14 forwards and 8 defensemen on one-way deals here are the players vying for spots:

Forwards:

Jack Studnicka, Jakub Lauko, Jesper Froden, Oskar Steen, Matt Filipe, Steven Fogarty, Anton Blidh and Karson Kuhlman.

Defencemen:

Jack Ahcan, Urho Vaakanainen, and Brady Lyle.

Along with Jeremy Swayman and Linus Ullmark, Troy Grosenick remains with the big club.

Barring an injury to start the season, one of the players on a one-way deal will find himself on the outside looking in. That could be between Karson Kuhlman and Chris Wagner.

WHAT EVER HAPPENED TO JAKOB FORSBACKA-KARLSSON?

Whatever happened to Jakob Forsbacka-Karlson? JFK, as he was known to Boston Bruins fans, was part of that infamous 2015 NHL Entry Draft, selected by Boston in the second round, 45th overall. He was being labeled by many as Patrice Bergeron Light.

He was coming off a good season with the Omaha Lancers in the USHL when drafted – scoring 15 goals and 38 assists in 50 games. He was committed to Boston University for the 2015-2016 season and as a sophomore scored 10 goals and 20 assists in 39 games – pretty good numbers. He also represented Sweden at the World Junior Championship Under-20, scoring once and adding 4 helpers. Things were looking promising.

During the 2016-2017 season where JFK was named an Alternate Captain with Boston University, he scored 14 goals and added 19 assists in 39 games while demonstrating he was on his way to being a solid two-way pivot.

Following his season, he wanted to turn pro and it is believed the Bruins wanted him to spend one more season in the NCAA. They eventually signed him and allowed him to play one NHL game and burn a year off of his entry level contract.

Things started off pretty well during the 2017-2018 season for JFK. In 58 AHL games he scored 15 goals and 17 assists. The following season he had 7 goals and 9 assists in 28 games in the AHL and even spent 28 games with the Big Bruins in the NHL – 3 goals and 6 helpers.

JFK’s offensive game was diminishing. So, he decided it was best for him to head home to Sweden to find his game and the Bruins agreed. However, his offensive game didn’t materialize back home either. In three seasons with Vaxjo Lakers HC and Farjestad BK of the SHL, JFK combined for a total of 90 games. He scored just 10 goals and 16 assists in that time, while going pointless in 6 total playoff games. He went from .56 points-per-game in the AHL to .31 in the NHL to .29 in the SHL. Needless to say, the decision to head back home was a failure, at least in hockey terms. You shouldn’t be putting up more PPG in the NHL than the SHL, at least in theory.

And then….

Some, including yours truly, believed that JFK had his sites set on a return to North America. NHL camps and exhibition games are well under way and AHL camps have begun and there hasn’t even been a peep. In this case, no news is not good news.

To further complicate things, European leagues are already underway and he has yet to find a home in one of those leagues, including the KHL.

One has to ask: Why would a player terminate his contract with a year remaining on the deal to seek out other opportunities before he had an agreement in place with another team and league?

As for the Bruins, I don’t see a fit. They have a logjam at the NHL and AHL levels already and spots with the Maine Mariners are filling up fast as well. Obviously, they could trade his rights – which they own until 2024 – but is he worth even a seventh-round pick to someone?

Follow me on Twitter @dominictiano

BOSTON BRUINS MONDAY MORNING PROSPECTS UPDATE: WEEK ENDING OCTOBER 3, 2022

Back at the 2020 National Hockey League Entry Draft, the Boston Bruins traded their seventh-round draft pick to the Toronto Maple Leafs for the latter’s pick in the 2021 Entry Draft. Many fans had questions as to why the Bruins would make such a move. Others were saying “well, it’s only a seventh-round pick.” It could be as simple as the Leafs had their eye on someone there and the Bruins weren’t completely enamored with the players available. Or, it could be the Bruins were looking ahead to the 2021 sweepstakes.

Hindsight as they say, is 20/20.

With their two seventh-round picks in the most recent entry draft, the Bruins selected Andre Gasseau with their own pick at 213 and Ty Gallagher with the Leafs pick at 217. Both players were coming off a season with the NTDP Under-18 in the USHL and what we do know is the Bruins like to have eyes on the USHL.

Today, our focus is on Gasseau.

The massive 6-foot 4-inch and 209-pound Gasseau is skating with the Fargo Force of the USHL along with fellow Bruins prospect, 2020 fifth-round pick Mason Langenbrunner. While most people find it hard to get excited about a seventh-round pick, there is plenty of time for Gasseau to develop. He is committed to Boston College for the 2022-2023 season and could spend up to four seasons there after his USHL days are over.

Here are some independent scouting services reports:

Gasseau has intriguing qualities that will stand out too many teams at the draft. He is a huge center with good skating and defensive awareness. He has the potential and ability to become an effective middle-six forward at the next level, but needs to improve on a few things if he wants to contribute more offense. He has good skating ability for his size, having a strong stride, able to generate acceleration well when given space. He has the ability to turn on the jets in the neutral zone. He’s solid on his edges and is able to stop and go efficiently, covering a lot of ice, though he could improve his lateral mobility to create more space for himself. He uses his size well, protecting and controlling the puck along the boards. FC HOCKEY Ranked 121st.

Gasseau is an intriguing prospect because of his combination of size and skill. He has an NHL frame already, listed at 6’4” 203 lbs. Andre is a skilled player who can make good things happen in the offensive zone. He can make plays to set up his linemates and has the ability score himself. He is a great cycle player due to his long reach and ability to protect the puck. He’s also strong and hard to knock off balance when he is taking the puck to the net. Andre is a poised player who has the ability to be patient with the puck until he finds a good play. He makes smart passes in all three zones and can be relied upon to play all three forward positions if needed. He is also more than capable in his own zone using his body and reach to defend. He’s not a player who sacrifices the defensive zone for offense. He commits himself to taking care of his own end and playing a strong 200-foot game. Gasseau is not a great skater as can be expected with his size. His skating isn’t bad but his speed and first couple steps need to get better if he is going to play in the NHL. HockeyProspect Black Book – Not Ranked.

Gasseau had a superb preseason with Fargo scoring once and adding 4 assists in three games. He scored in his first game of the season against the Chicago Steel and added a nifty shootout goal to keep Fargo alive – but they eventual lost in the shootout. He has been such a pleasant surprise that he was moved from third line left wing to the top line in their next contest Team USA. It wasn’t the greatest of debuts on the top line for Gasseau. He was on the ice for three first period goals against as Fargo fell behind 3-0 in the opening frame, with the third one coming while Gasseau was on the PK. He got stronger as the game went on but was kept off the scoresheet as Fargo came back to win 4-3 in overtime.

Gasseau’s size is impressive. I was also impressed with his skating for his size, although I would like to see a quicker first step, but the mechanics are good. Also impressive is his ability to protect the puck and slow the game down and wait for an opportunity to open up or to create a passing lane. I liked the way he got in on the forecheck and he cycles well with his linemates. His defensive awareness lacked at times.

As a freshman, I’m not looking for Gasseau to be a big point producer. Instead, I want to see how he progresses in certain areas of his game as the season moves forward and from year to year. The points are an added bonus. At this early stage it’s all about showing progression and development.

In other news: Fabian Lysell made his debut with the Vancouver Giants of the WHL registering an assist. Peter Cehlarik continues to be a force on the powerplay with Avangard Omsk of the KHL and has been held pointless just twice through 11 games. Roman Bychkov was a healthy scratch for the fifth time this season with Armur of the KHL and a demotion to the VHL is likely to come when the team is healthy. Riley Duran made his NCAA debut with Providence Friars and recorded his first career NCAA point with an assist. Matias Mantykivi continues to struggle with offensive production. John Beecher will miss 4 weeks with an upper body injury. According to the Wolverines, the injury is not related to his shoulder which required surgery early this year. Brett Harrison scored 2 shorthanded goals in his final exhibition game finishing the preseason with3 goals and 4 assists in 4 games. Jack Becker scored twice and assisted on another on opening night, but was held off the scoresheet in the back half of back-to-back games.

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BOSTON BRUINS TRIM CAMP ROSTER

Today, the Boston Bruins announced they have trimmed their training camp roster by seven. With Fabian Lysell, Brett Harrison and Ryan Mast already sent back to their respective Canadian Hockey League squads today’s cuts, along with Callum Booth who has already cleared waivers, will attend the Providence Bruins training camp which begins Monday.

Those that were cut today include: Jeremy Brodeur, Jack Dougherty, Ian McKinnon, Andrew Peski, Eduards Tralmaks, Alex-Olivier Voyer and of course Booth. With the exception of Booth, all were on AHL contracts so the moves should come as no surprise.

Coach Bruce Cassidy has said that youngsters will get the opportunity to play in Monday’s exhibition game, so the next round of cuts likely won’t happen until then. It’s also likely the next round will be players on two-way contracts that do not require waivers.

Of course, there are others like Jack Studnicka who they want to have a longer look at with the big club that will be sticking around. Those that do require waivers such as Anton Blidh, Karson Kuhlman, Tyler Lewington, Troy Grosenick and others usually stick around closer to the end of camp as most teams place their prospects on waivers all at once.  

There is still a large contingency at camp, but expect a more manageable number by Tuesday.

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