There has been all kinds of speculation about where Mason Lohrei stands in the Boston Bruins' organization. His name has been circulating in trade talks ever since last season, when Don Sweeney was in the running for Rasmus Andersson, and those rumors persisted after Marco Sturm made the team's youngest defenseman a healthy scratch in the playoffs.
The rumors would have you believe that there will be a Lohrei trade before the regular season begins, but it is rare for movement like that to happen so close to training camp. If Sweeney was going to make that move or liked the value he was getting in potential trade packages this offseason, he would've already done it.
One person who doesn't seem to believe he is getting traded is the player himself, as he is already doing media under the guise that he will be at Bruins training camp. Not only is he doing media, but a comment he made about offseason acquisition Will Borgen in an interview with the Bruins website should give fans reason to believe that Lohrei still has a chance to work out in Boston.
"“We kind of clicked right away, hit it off, and then we got to play together, too, for like the last four games of the tournament. It was a lot of fun. I was pretty excited [when Borgen got traded]. I just texted him right away and said I was happy he was coming.”"Mason Lohrei
Lohrei's apparent connection with Borgen opens up a world of possibilities for an armchair head coach who has no idea what Sturm and his staff are actually thinking going into this season. While he may not be elite anymore, if Lohrei and Borgen can play together, that would give Hampus Lindholm a chance to play on a pair with Charlie McAvoy once the Bruins' assistant captain returns from his suspension.
As we've covered endlessly, McAvoy needs a solid defenseman alongside him to be at his best, and a season with Lindholm would be much better than another season with Jonathan Aspirot. A pairing of Lohrei and Borgen would then leave Nikita Zadorov to play with one of Aspirot, Connor Clifton, or Frederic Brunet, depending on who wins the job out of camp.
On paper, Lohrei and Borgen make sense as a pairing. They obviously have a connection, and it would be a classic offensive puck-mover with a stay-at-home physical shutdown defender. If the Bruins get the best version of Lohrei this season, it might work out in the front office's favor to hang on to him, and despite some fans not being a huge fan of him, that might be in the best interest of everyone.
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