Dean Letourneau demonstrates new element in Boston College's season opener

You can give Boston Bruins' prospect Dean Letourneau a pass for not being the most physical player in his freshman season at Boston College. Letourneau was thrown into the fire in his first season, expecting to play a year in the USHL before Will Smith signed his pro contract with the San Jose Sharks, opening a spot on the Eagles' roster. After going directly from Canadian Prep School Hockey to the NCAA, the six-foot-seven forward still had plenty of growing left to do.

Letourneau has been bigger than all his opponents for his entire hockey career. It isn't easy to grow up under Hockey Canada rules, as any contact with an opponent's head results in an automatic four-minute penalty. He likely had to teach himself at a young age to refrain from making significant body contact, as any check on an opposing player would more often than not lead to a four-minute penalty or worse.

While Letourneau is still bigger than most of his opponents at the NCAA level, the rules are now slightly different. He can still do damage to those players, but it's much harder to get a penalty for a clean body check. It's no fault of Letourneau that he didn't bring that element to his game in his freshman season, as it could take a while to flip that switch in his mind and realize he can be a physical presence.

Consider the switch, flipped. While Letourneau had a disappointing night in Boston College's season opener with no shots, no points, and a -2 rating, it was his physical presence on the ice that stood out. He laid a couple of crushing open ice hits, none bigger than the one shown by Bruins' pundit Michael Sullivan on social media.

It's clear that Letourneau likely isn't going to be a 100-point scorer in the NHL. He is still a work in progress, and Bruins fans don't have high hopes that he will become a star NHL player. However, you would expect some impact out of a player you used a first-round pick on. If Letourneau becomes a physical, middle-six center who chips in offensively but opens up space for his teammates, would that be enough to keep the fans happy?

It's still a long development curve for Letourneau. Perhaps the added physical presence opens more space for him in this NCAA season, and he unlocks a new level offensively. He did have 127 points in 56 games in his final prep season, so the offensive touch is there. It's now time for him to prove that those numbers in prep weren't because he was eight inches taller than everyone else. If not, the Bruins might just have a cleaner Matt Rempe in their pipeline.