The Bruins prospects wasted no time making noise in Buffalo.
Boston’s group opened the Prospects Showcase yesterday against the Sabres and grabbed control right away, getting on the board 25 seconds into the game when Attilio Biasca scored. Five different Bruins found the net in the opener, and James Hagens stood out in the middle of it all by centering the first line and scoring twice. In goal, Max Lundgren turned aside all but two shots as the Bruins prospects came away with the edge.
The rematch is coming fast. Game 2 is set for noon today.
Around the league, the NHL Network’s top 50 players right now list kept moving yesterday with Nos. 30-21 unveiled. Five of the players in that group come from the Atlantic Division.
There’s also a notable contract situation in Columbus, where Adam Fantilli remains unsigned. He has not been at Blue Jackets team events ahead of training camp, and with camp only days away, extension talks still haven’t gained much traction.
The report notes that Danny Briere shifted the market by giving Leo Carlsson an offer sheet with an $18M AAV, and that has had a direct impact on the Fantilli negotiations. Columbus still has $12,645,001 in cap space.
In Montreal, the Canadiens locked up forward Zachary Bolduc on a four-year deal worth $4.2 million per season. The 23-year-old was headed into the season without a contract, and his role becomes a little murkier after the Chris Kreider signing, with Marc Dumont offering instant analysis on the move. Sportsnet added that Montreal is betting on Kreider’s experience and scoring touch, and that he left bigger offers behind to end up there, with fit and comfort part of the decision.
Elsewhere in prospect hockey, Pittsburgh kept rolling after moving from Buffalo to Detroit. The Penguins beat Columbus on Saturday, then topped the host Red Wings in a shootout on Sunday. Tomas Galvas, who scored in Detroit, emerged as the weekend storyline for Pittsburgh, and Dan Kingerski broke down who impressed and who didn’t.
San Jose had a big night at the Rookie Faceoff, beating the Kings 8-1. Sheng Peng reported from the locker room with comments from Ivar Stenberg and Andre Gasseau.
And in Columbus, the Blue Jackets added veteran defenseman Carson Soucy on a PTO. Soucy, 32, split last season between the Rangers and Islanders and posted 12 points (5-7-12) in 76 games.
In Other News...
Bruins Camp Opens With One Immediate Offensive Decision To Make
Training camp opens this week with Marco Sturm still sorting out the Bruins roster and line combinations for the season opener against the Rangers, and one of the clearest early decisions centers on how to deploy a player who gives the lineup some much-needed flexibility. Boston brought in JJ Peterka in June, and his arrival adds another variable to the top-six mix as the staff begins mapping out who fits where, and for how long.
Peterkas versatility is part of what makes the choice interesting, since he can be slotted on either wing and could also factor into the power play if the Bruins decide his shot belongs in that mix. It is the kind of early camp puzzle that can shape everything else around it, from even-strength chemistry to special-teams balance, especially with Charlie McAvoy also drawing league-wide attention after being ranked 46th in TSNs top 50 NHL players list ahead of the season. [Read more 🡒]
Bruins Camp Opens With A Top Six Decision Hanging Over Everything
The Bruins open camp with a 42-man roster to sort through, but the biggest question is already clear enough: how they want their top six to look when the season starts. Before the club gets down to a 23-man roster for opening night, Boston has to use training camp and preseason games to figure out which combinations make the most sense, and whether the current mix can hold up once the real games begin.
Pavel Zacha sits right in the middle of that conversation, with his contract situation still hanging over the roster picture as the organization weighs short-term fit against longer-term flexibility. Add in Casey Mittelstadt, who is also in the final year of his deal, and the Bruins have a top-six puzzle that touches everything from the salary cap to the development path for younger forwards like James Hagens and Dans Locmelis. The decisions made over the next few weeks could shape not just this fall, but how Boston approaches the future. [Read more 🡒]
Bruins Are Letting One Early Camp Frustration Grow Fast
Training camp has opened with one obvious piece missing from the Bruins usual dress code. Since Brad Marchand was traded in March, Boston has gone into the new season without naming a captain, and a recent preseason photo shoot only underlined the point as the leadership group seemed to spread more broadly across the room.
Charlie McAvoy, David Pastrnak and Hampus Lindholm all were shown wearing alternate captain patches, a sign of how the team is leaning on several voices at once. Still, no Bruins player wore the captains C, and with other NHL teams already setting their leadership for the year ahead, Bostons answer to that vacancy remains one of camps most noticeable unresolved issues. [Read more 🡒]