You can say what you like about the Boston Bruins and their outlook for this season, but it's hard to deny that there could be something happening down the road with the Providence Bruins. If you're a fan of the team, it might be worth the investment for the AHL's streaming service, as Providence might be the more exciting of the black and gold teams this winter.
With the influx of veteran players vying for spots in Boston, there's reason to believe that the front office is looking at potentially loading up the Baby Bruins with young talent and hoping the group can grow together into championship contenders. It wouldn't be the first time that a team took the approach of chasing a championship in the minor leagues with a specific group and giving them all a chance to do the same thing with the big club.
Bruins Rookie Camp gives the front office a first-look at some of the prospects who could challenge for a spot in Boston at training camp and down the road, but we're going to look past that entirely. The odds are stacked against players like Dans Locmelis and Riley Duran to make the team out of camp, so their playing together on the first day of Rookie Camp gives us time to imagine them as a duo in Providence.
Dans Locmelis is centering Riley Duran, and Cooper Simpson during initial rush drills at BOS Rookie Camp. Suspect that may be a line combination to begin the Prospect Challenge this weekend. #NHLBruins
— Brian DeFelice (@briandefelice_) September 10, 2025
2025 draft prospect Cooper Simpson won't have to worry about Providence for a couple of years as he returns to the USHL for next year before attending the University of North Dakota in 2026-27. However, it'll be interesting to see how he looks alongside two players who will start the year in Providence before getting a possible opportunity at a call-up later in the season. Duran already had that opportunity last season with a two-game call-up at the end of the season.
Duran and Locmelis offer an intriguing look at a potential top-six duo in Providence. The possibility of that duo alongside Georgii Merkulov on the left side could be a formidable line, especially if some combination of the remaining players who didn't make Boston make up the rest of the top six. Some of those options include Fabian Lysell, Matej Blumel, Alex Steeves, and Matt Poitras.
It's uncharted territory for Bruins fans to be worrying about the top six of Providence a month before the regular season starts, but welcome to life as a rebuilding team.