When it came to the fourth round of the 2024 NHL Entry Draft, the Boston Bruins picked 110th overall. With that pick, general manager Don Sweeney selected defenseman Elliott Gorenewold, a native of Vermont.
He has flown under the radar in his first two seasons at Quinnipiac. As a freshman, he had four goals and 12 points for the Bobcats in 38 games. This season, as so many college prospects do, he took a step in his development and production. In 39 games, the 6-foot-2, 215-pound left-shot has seven goals and 13 assists.
On Thursday night, the Bobcats opened the NCAA Tournament with a 5-2 win over Providence in the semifinals of the Sioux Falls Regional. Quinnipiac will hang around in South Dakota for another couple of days. They will face North Dakota in the Regional Final on Saturday at 7 p.m. EST with a trip to the Frozen Four on the line. Looking for a spark against the Friars, Groenewold provided that.
Quinnipiac coach Rand Pecknold gave a promising Elliott Groenewold outlook for Bruins fans
In a scoreless game in the second period, Groenewold collected a pass at the blueline in the offensive end, and his shot from the point found its way into the Providence net for a 1-0 lead. Another Boston prospect, Christopher Pelosi, gave the Bobcats a 2-0 lead later in the middle period. After the game, Quinnipiac coach Rand Pecknold gave an update on Sweeney's prospect, and it's one with a promising outlook.
"There were a lot of pivotal moments in that game, but probably Elliott's goal, just to get us going and going up one to nothing, it just changed the game,'' said Pecknold. "In terms of Elliott, I'm not gonna lie, he struggled a bit the last month of the year. He was trying to overthink things a little bit. He's a great kid. He is going to play in the NHL one day. I don't know when, but he will.''
Groenewold is just a sophomore for the Bobcats and will likely return for his junior year next season. Of course, that could change, but there is no doubt that the Bruins are going to need any kind of prospect depth on the defense that they can get. Groenewold is someone who is likely heading down a path to supply that. Pecknold's outlook certainly sets up well for the future.