Ranking Boston Bruins Top 10 Prospects: No's 1-5
Who are the top 5 prospects for the Boston Bruins entering the 2024-25 season?
As we go through the dog days of August, we are continuing to take a look ahead to the 2024-25 Boston Bruins season. Tuesday, we took our first look at the Top 10 prospects with No.'s 6-10 for the Black and Gold, who generally rank near the bottom of the NHL in prospect pool rankings.
Today, we will take a look at the top 5 prospects that the Bruins have going into the season and in reality, multiple of these players are ready to take the next step in the NHL for coach Jim Montgomery as early as this season. Here are the top 5 prospects for Boston.
Boston Bruins Top 5 prospects
Oskar Jellvik. player. . Center/Wing. 5. . Oskar Jellvik. . 70. Boston Bruins
If you have not got to know Oskar Jellvik, it's time to start paying attention to the Boston College forward. Selected in the fifth round of the 2021 Draft, Jellvik has emerged as a rising star for the Eagles and played a big role in their run to the National Championship Game this past April.
In 41 games, he finished with 13 goals and 29 assists spending a lot of time on a line with fellow Bruins' prospects Andre Gasseau and Trevor Kuntar. In his freshman season at BC, he had just four goals and 13 assists, but he saw a huge jump in his game in his second year in Hockey East. He's certainly a quick riser in the current prospect pool for the Black and Gold.
. Georgii Merkulov. Boston Bruins. . Georgii Merkulov. player. . Center/Wing. 70. 4
If there has been one area where the Bruins have found some success, it is with signing undrafted free agents. One of those is Georgii Merkulov who has played very well with the Providence Bruins the last two seasons and is knocking on the door of carving out a role in the NHL. It could come as soon as this season.
Merkulov is one of a couple of players who are going to be in a battle in training camp to fill the spot left open when Jake DeBrusk left in free agency for the Vancouver Canucks. Last season with Providence, Merkulov had 30 goals and 25 assists while playing four games in Boston in the bottom six. Certainly, he is someone to watch in training camp.
Fabian Lysell. . Right Wing. . Fabian Lysell. Boston Bruins. player. 3. 70.
Another first-round pick the Bruins had was in 2021 when they took talented forward Fabian Lysell, who was selected 21st overall. He has been knocking on the door of a spot in the NHL, but he's never been able to break through. He will be given an opportunity this year with Merkulov to try and fill DeBrusk's departure.
This past season he saw a jump in his production with 15 goals and 35 assists for Providence after tallying just 14 goals and 23 assists in his first pro season. If there has been one knock on him, it's that he's been injured a lot and lacks NHL size at 5-foot-11 and 185 pounds. This feels like a big season for Lysell.
Matthew Poitras. Matthew Poitras. player. Boston Bruins. Center. . 2. 70. .
Last season, Matthew Poitras had the best training camp for the Bruins prospects. In the end, he made the Opening Night roster and in the end, he played so well that the front office and Jim Montgomery had no choice but to keep him in Boston. The 54th overall pick in the 2022 Draft earned his spot as a third-line center.
This past season, the 20-year-old played in 33 games for the Bruins with five goals and 10 assists, but it was his impressive speed and skill that was most noticeable. His season was cut short in February after shoulder surgery cost him the rest of the season, but he should be ready for training camp next month and ready to go in season No. 2.
Boston Bruins. . 70. . . Mason Lohrei. 1. player. Defenseman. Mason Lohrei
For a while, Lysell held the top spot in the Bruins prospects rankings, but he was passed last season by both Lohrei and Poitras and Lohrei proved to get the nod over both. He played well early in the season in Boston but was sent back to Providence, but he came up in February after an injury to Hampus Lindholm and had three assists against the Edmonton Oilers in an overtime win.
He played well in the Stanley Cup Playoffs against the Toronto Maple Leafs and Florida Panthers, even scoring a goal in a Game 1 win over Florida. He is a big reason why Sweeney let Matt Grzelcyk and Derek Forbort leave in free agency this summer as he's ready to slide in at the third defensive pairing on the left side full-time. He leaves little doubt as to who the top prospect is with the Bruins.
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