Mason Langenbrunner
The son of ex-NHLer Jamie Langebrunner, Mason is in his first season with the USHL’s Fargo Force. The defenseman from Minnesota hasn’t seen the offensive production translate from high school hockey for Eden Prairie High to the USHL, but he’s secured five assists in 24 games.
While some may have expected a bit more offensive production out of Langenbrunner, he’s improving in his defensive end. For those that put stock in plus/minus, he’s one of just a handful of skaters on Fargo that is on the positive side of the stat. He’s tied for second in that category with a +4.
The fifth-round pick from 2020 is committed to Harvard University for next year, allowing the Bruins to get an even closer look at Langenbrunner.
Andre Gasseau
Gasseau is also on Fargo with Langenbrunner. He made the switch to the Fargo Force after being a member of the U.S. National Team Development Program last season.
One of the Bruins two seventh-round picks from this summer’s draft, Gasseau started out strong with Fargo, recording five goals and two assists in the first five games of the season, including a hat trick. But he cooled off, with just six points in the 17 games since. He is fourth on the team in points with 13 in 22 games as they head into their holiday break.
He’ll be in the Boston area for college next season, joining fellow Bruins prospect Oskar Jellvik as a freshman at Boston College. He’s shown flashes where the offense is there, but the inconsistency is a bit concerning.
Philip Svedebäck
Svedebäck’s transition from Swedish juniors to the USHL couldn’t have gotten out to a better start.
The 2021 fourth-rounder kicked off the season 5-0-2 with the Dubuque Fighting Saints, posting a .906 SV% and .312 GAA in his first seven games. After just two games in the USHL, the Swedish goaltender had committed to Providence College for next season.
But since then, Svedebäck is 0-3-0, allowing 16 goals in the three games, including allowing six goals in both matchups against the Chicago Steel. Now, he’s out with an injury and hasn’t played since the first week of December. Hopefully the Dubuque goaltender can get healthy and get back into the groove he started out with.