The Bruins used their final pick in the 2026 NHL Draft to lean into exactly the kind of player they’ve always seemed to covet: a hard-nosed, physical defenseman who makes life uncomfortable.
With the 216th overall pick, Boston grabbed Cullen McCrate out of the Fargo Force, adding a 6-foot-2, 205-pound blueliner who projects as a stay-at-home presence with plenty of edge. He’s 19, headed to Michigan State this upcoming season, and comes out of his second full year in the USHL with a profile that’s starting to look a lot more interesting than a typical late-round flyer.
McCrate’s first year in Fargo was quiet on the scoresheet, with five points in 47 games. Then the offense showed up.
He put up 30 points in 61 games for the Force this past season, including 11 goals and 23 assists in 70 USHL games when playoffs are counted. That kind of jump is exactly why a team will take a chance this late.
For the Bruins, the appeal is obvious. This is the sort of player they’ve long been willing to bet on in the later rounds, especially if there’s even a slim path to turning him into someone with real organizational value. The source material points to McCrate as a player who could keep growing on the college track, sharpening his offense while rounding out the rest of his game.
It’s also the kind of pick that reminds fans not to dismiss a seventh-rounder too quickly. Andre Gasseau is the cautionary tale and the template here: another seventh-round name who barely registered at the time, then eventually became the captain at Boston College and a player Boston fans knew well after he chose not to sign with the organization. His rights later became part of a trade that brought back a fifth-round pick, which turned into Jacob Vandeven.
That’s the range of outcomes with a pick like McCrate. He could disappear from the conversation until his signing rights are nearing expiration.
He could develop into a Providence Bruins piece. Or he could become something much more than a late-round afterthought, maybe even a version of Arber Xhekaj without the Costco job on his resume.
That uncertainty is the whole point. The Bruins took a swing on a player who fits their mold, and now the rest is up to time.
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Ivan Ivan adds another layer to that picture. Boston brought him in from the Colorado Avalanche and then locked him in on a one-year contract, another move that suggests the Bruins are willing to keep tinkering as they try to fill out the depth chart through trades and free agency. The larger question for Sweeney is whether these pieces are the start of a clearer plan or simply the latest steps in a summer that still has one or two important decisions left to make. [Read more 🡒]