The Boston Bruins have had a lot of regular-season success over the past few years, but it hasn’t translated to a lengthy playoff run. They’ve managed to stay in contention despite a bevy of on-ice personnel losses and re-tooled this summer signing a couple of lucrative long-term contracts with top-tier free agents. With an aging core that knows how to win, Boston has elected to run it back once again over the next few seasons and should be formidable when the puck drops on the regular season this fall.
Draft 1-25: C Dean Letourneau , St. Andrews College (High-ON) 4-110: D Elliott Groenewold , Cedar Rapids (USHL) 5-154: C Jonathan Morello , St. Michaels (OJHL) 6-186: D Loke Johansson Sweden-JR (Aik Jr.
) The Bruins didn’t have much of an opportunity to re-stock the prospect cupboards at this year’s NHL entry draft, however, they did manage to snag a first-round pick in the Linus Ullmark trade which they promptly used to draft the towering Letourneau. The Ottawa Valley native played prep school hockey in Ontario this past season and led St. Andrew’s with 61 goals and 66 assists in 56 games.
Scouts sometimes have difficulty assessing prep school hockey players relative to their peers, but given Letourneau’s size and length, it was hard for the Bruins to pass on a player who looks like a prototypical Boston player. Boston selected the 18-year-old Groenewold in the fourth round of the draft after he appeared in 57 games for the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders of the USHL last.