With the calendar turning to 2022, it’s time for another Boston Bruins Prospect Report for The Hockey Writers. In this edition, we will look at how some of the Black and Gold’s prospects are faring in college and more.
Harrison Powering Oshawa
With each game that Brett Harrison plays with the Oshawa Generals in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), he is proving to be a value pick in the third round of July’s Entry Draft, 85th overall. In 23 games this season, he has 15 goals and 13 assists, second on the team behind Ty Tullio, an Edmonton Oilers prospect.
A natural center, Harrison has six goals and seven assists on the power play this season, with 82 shots on the net. Before the draft last summer, Harrison was projected as a late first-round, or second-round pick, and watching him this season, you can see why the scouts were high on him. Falling to Bruins general manager Don Sweeney in the third round could turn out to be a steal.
Duran Having Strong Freshman Season at Providence
One of the Bruins’ later picks in the 2020 draft, Riley Duran is having a good start to his collegiate career at Providence College. In 23 games for the Friars this season, the 182nd pick in the sixth round, is sixth on the team in points with 13 on five goals and eight assists.
In the recent 2021 Holiday Faceoff hosted by the University of Wisconsin, Duran had an assist in a 6-2 semifinal round win over Bowling Green University. In the championship game, he had an assist, but Providence lost in a shootout to the host Badgers. Duran was recently named a Hockey East Co-Rookie of the Week after recording two goals and two assists with a plus/minus of plus-4 in a sweep of Princeton.
Providence is 15-7-1 this season and will be off until a weekend home-and-home series with Merrimack College on Jan. 14-15. Duran, who is 6-foot-2 and 180 pounds, is on a four-game point streak, and can play both center and wing. A Boston native that grew up near the TD Garden, Duran is not a highly touted prospect, but his development at Providence is worth keeping an eye on.
Lohrei Continues to Impress at Ohio State
Mason Lohrei had an impressive two seasons with the Green Bay Gamblers in the USHL the last two seasons and he has not slowed down with his offensive game for a defenseman during his freshman season at Ohio State. In 19 games for the Buckeyes, he has 17 assists and 19 points, good enough to be tied with Georgii Merkulov for the team lead in points.
Selected 58th overall in the second round of the 2020 draft, Lohrei made a name for himself as an offensive defenseman with Gamblers with 69 assists the last two seasons. In a recent two-game sweep of Long Island University, Lohrei had three assists in a 7-2 win on New Years Day. In the tweet below, Loheri did what defensemen are taught to do, shoot the puck and anything can happen. This time Patrick Guzzo tips his shot for a goal.
Assists to Lohrei (his team-best 15th) and Riedell.
#GoBucks https://t.co/dBOGBvhPLp
At 6-foot-4 and 200 pounds, there is certainly a lot to like with Lohrei’s game as his development continues to evolve at Ohio State.
Lysell Missed WJC Game
Fabian Lysell, Bruins’ first-round pick at No. 21 last July, was part of the World Junior Championship roster last month, but missed Sweden’s first game against Russia because of a non-COVID illness. Unfortunately for Lysell and his teammates, he was not able to suit up after that game.
Related: Bruins’ Top10 Prospects Heading Into the 2021-22 Season
On Dec. 29, the World Junior Championships were canceled because of a rising number of COVID-19 cases. Lysell will eventually return to his team, the Vancouver Giants of the Western Hockey League (WHL), where he is having a strong rookie season. In 23 games, he has 11 goals and 17 assists for the Giants.
Overall, there are plenty of Bruins prospects having good seasons. There is a lot of questions as to just how good and deep the pool is, but regardless, there is a lot to like about how some of them are developing as the calendar turns to 2022.
Scott Roche covers the Boston Bruins for The Hockey Writers. A frequent user of the Oxford comma. Scott has been a sports writer for 25 years for different sites and daily newspapers. Writing started out as a hobby, but it has become a passion for Scott over the years.