On Tuesday, the Boston Bruins officially announced their roster for rookie camp, the Prospects Challenge, as well as the schedule for the Rookie Challenge.
Rookie camp concludes today at Warrior Arena in Brighton, and all of those named to the Prospects Challenge will head to Buffalo, New York, where they will compete in a round-robin tournament at the LECOM Harborcenter – the practice facility for the Buffalo Sabres.
The six teams involved in the tournament include the Bruins, Sabres, Montreal Canadiens, Pittsburgh Penguins, New Jersey Devils, and Ottawa Senators. While each team may not play each other, each team does get the opportunity to play a total of three games.
The Roster
The Bruins roster consists of 14 forwards, eight defensemen, and two goaltenders. While most of the roster consists of players in the Boston system already – some new, some not so new – there are a few players who will be playing on invitation basis only, which happens to include both goaltenders.
Forwards:
Joey Abate (2023 stats: 35 games – 3 goals, 3 assists), John Beecher (2023 stats: 61 games – 9 goals, 14 assists), *Julien Beland, John Farinacci (first professional season), *Ty Halaburda, Curtis Hall (45 games (37 with Providence, 8 with Maine) – 6 goals, 3 assists), Brett Harrison (has played in one professional game for AHL Providence in the 2022-23 season, where he recorded an assist), Trevor Kuntar (first professional season), Fabian Lysell (54 games – 14 goals, 23 assists), *Adam Mechura, Georgii Merkulov (67 games – 24 goals, 31 assists), Owen Pederson (first professional season), Matthew Poitras (first professional season), Luke Toporowski (41 games – 15 goals, 14 assists).
Defensemen:
Frederic Brunet (has played in one professional game for AHL Providence in 2022-23 season, where he recorded two assists), Michael Callahan (55 games – 1 goal, 7 assists), Jackson Edward (first professional season), Mason Lohrei (2023 stats: 5 games – 0 goals, 1 assist), Ryan Mast (first professional season), Ethan Ritchie (first professional season), *Grayden Siepmann, *Blake Smith.
Goaltenders:
*William Rousseau, *Samuel St. Hillaire.
*indicates by invite-only
The Schedule
Boston’s games will take place on Friday, Saturday, and Monday. They will take place at the LECOM Harborcenter in Buffalo.
The first game on Friday, will take place at 3:30 p.m. when they take on the prospects from the Pittsburgh Penguins, the second game on Saturday will also be played at 3:30 p.m. and they will face off against the Montreal Canadiens, and after a day of practice on Sunday, the Bruins conclude their share of the tournament on Monday, when they play the New Jersey Devils at 10:00 a.m.
Analysis
While the teams that Boston plays are not ones that it will see until November at the earliest, when the Bruins take on the Canadiens for the first time north of the border at the Bell Centre, this will be a good test for their more promising prospects.
One prospect to keep an eye on above all others is Fabian Lysell. Lysell has said repeatedly in the offseason that he is “determined to make the roster” this season, and he does genuinely have a good chance at it.
Other players of note are Georgii Merkulov, and Luke Toporowski. Both spent significant time in Providence, and had some high numbers. Merkulov topped 50 points last season, and given that he plays the center position is bound to be looked at as a depth piece by Don Sweeney and his team.
Toporowski also plays center, and hit the 15 goal mark in Providence. He may not be looked at as much of a blue-chip prospect, and as untouchable as Merkulov, but he is definitely one to keep an eye on.
Just for the intrigue factor, John Farinacci is definitely a name to keep an eye on as well. The first-year center out of Harvard University went unsigned this summer after being drafted 76th-overall by the Arizona Coyotes.
He may need a year or two before he gets settled in, but, at the same time, don’t be alarmed if he settles in right away.