Boston Bruins

Boston Bruins

Team Depth Chart of NHL Prospects
Strengths
  • Talent and depth on defense.
  • Talent and depth at all forward positions.
  • Depth in goal.
Weaknesses
  • Lack of top-end talent in goal.

About Prospect Scores and Probability

Prospect Criteria

Legend of Players' Leagues
Pro
Playing in N.A. Pro (NHL, AHL, ECHL, etc.)
CHL
Playing in CHL (OHL, QMJHL, WHL)
NCAA
Playing in NCAA
Europe
Playing in Europe
Junior
Playing in Junior 'A' (USHL, BCHL, AJHL, etc.)
N/A
Not Categorized Yet

Goaltenders

 League Prosp. talent Prob. of success
1. Malcolm Subban CHL 8.0 C
2. Zane Gothberg NCAA 7.0 C
3. Niklas Svedberg Pro 7.0 C
4. Lars Volden Europe 6.5 C
5. Michael Hutchinson Pro 6.0 B
6. Adam Morrison Pro 5.5 C

Right Wing

 League Prosp. talent Prob. of success
1. Jared Knight Pro 7.0 C
2. Brian Ferlin NCAA 7.0 C
3. Carter Camper Pro 7.0 D
4. Alexander Fallstrom Pro 6.5 C
5. Tyler Randell Pro 5.0 C

Left Wing

 League Prosp. talent Prob. of success
1. Anthony Camara CHL 7.0 D
2. Craig Cunningham CHL 6.5 C
3. Justin Florek NCAA 6.0 C
4. Colton Hargrove NCAA 5.0 C

Centers

 League Prosp. talent Prob. of success
1. Ryan Spooner Pro 7.5 C
2. Alexander Khokhlachev Pro 7.5 C
3. Seth Griffith CHL 7.0 C
4. Rob Flick Pro 6.5 C
5. Ben Sexton NCAA 6.0 C
6. Mark Goggin NCAA 6.0 D

Defensemen

 League Prosp. talent Prob. of success
1. Dougie Hamilton CHL 9.0 C
2. Maxim Chudinov Europe 7.5 D
3. Torey Krug Pro 7.0 C
4. Matt Grzelcyk NCAA 7.0 C
5. Tommy Cross Pro 6.5 C
6. Rob O'Gara NCAA 6.5 C
7. Zach Trotman Pro 6.5 C
8. David Warsofsky Pro 6.0 B
9. Matt Bartkowski Pro 6.0 B
10. Kevan Miller Pro 6.0 B
11. Colby Cohen Pro 6.0 C
12. Ryan Button Pro 6.0 C
13. Matt Benning Junior 5.0 C

Bruins 2002 Draft Preview: 1st Edition

by Shane Walsh
on

The 2002 NHL Entry Draft appears to be the weakest since 1996. There are some players like Jay Bouwmeester, Rick Nash and Kari Lehtonen who will have decent futures in the NHL, but mostly the 2002 draft class is a complete crapshoot; more so this year than in seasons past. It will be interesting to see which players don’t sign and re-enter the draft that could be good potential investments down the road. The Boston Bruins have one possible re-entry; 6’5” Forward Chris Berti of the Erie Otters (OHL). The Bruins will announce their first selection somewhere between 25-30 depending on the outcome of the regular season and the Stanley Cup finals.

The Bruins traded away their 3rd round pick to the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim for Winger Marty McInnis. At the trade deadline, Mike O’Connell traded away the Bruins 6th round pick to the Florida Panthers for Defenseman Jeff Norton. The Bruins may also lose a late round pick to the Dallas Stars as part of the future considerations for acquiring the services of Benoit Hogue earlier in the season. The Bruins do pickup the Phoenix Coyotes 5th round pick as part of the Andrei Nazarov trade and any other compensation picks that have yet to be awarded.

The prime question that needs to be answered is what do the Bruins really need most?

The answer is Centers!

Boston will likely choose the best player available on the board when they make their first selection. It’s anyone’s guess as to who that player could be at this point. With drafts such as these, som Read more»

The Cub Report: Q&A With Chris Berti

by Shane Walsh
on

Welcome To the Second Edition of the Cub Report. In this segment, we’ll look at Bruins prospect Chris Berti.

Chris Berti
Erie (OHL)
6'5", 215 lbs.
Left Wing, Shoots Left
Born: Oct 6, 1981 in Scarborough, On
GP	G	A	PTS	+/-	PIM
61	15	22	37	2	172

The only Canadian born player selected by the Bruins in the 2000 NHL Entry Draft, Chris Berti missed his first training camp that year due to a torn MCL in his knee. He was traded in January 2001 from the Sarnia Sting to the Erie Otters for Riley Moher. Last fall was his first appearance at training camp. He made a good first impression at the rookie tournament in Kitchener, Ontario.

A good skater for a behemoth player, Berti is versatile and can play all 3 forward positions. An obstinate hitter and fierce competitor, he will earn his way to the NHL by his intense physical play. A true teammate, he always puts the teams’ needs above his own interests. Some nights he plays like a scorer and other nights he’s a monster on the ice. He needs to simplify his game and focus primarily on physical play. He has the potential to be a legit NHL heavyweight if he realizes his true potential and remains focused. He needs to bulk up his 6’5″ frame.

Hockeysfuture correspondent Ken McKenna caught up with Berti for this exclusive interview.

HF: How do you feel about your progression from the beginning of the season? Do you feel like you’ve improved your game since then?

CB: I think my game has improved a little bit. I’ve gotten more oppo Read more»

The Cub Report: North American Bruins Prospects

by Shane Walsh
on

Welcome to the first installment of the Cub report, a weekly
look at the North American prospects of the Boston Bruins. In our first
installment, we’re going around the leagues to catch up on the young Bruin cubs.

WHL

Jiri Jakes has been hot as
of late. In the last 5 games, the rugged Czech winger has tallied 3 goals, 2
assists, and 14 penalty minutes. The Brandon Wheat Kings are currently tied with the Regina Pats for first place in the WHL’s eastern division heading into the final week of the regular season.

It looks as though the injury bug
has once again bitten Seattle Thunderbird winger Darren McLachlan. The rugged forward appears to be out for the remainder of the season with a
shoulder injury. The second last place Thunderbirds will oppose either the Portland Winter Hawks or Spokane Chiefs in a best-of-seven first round series in the WHL playoffs.

Shaone Morrisonn ended the Kamloops Blazers 0-29 Power play drought,scoring on a 5-on-3 opportunity against the Moose Jaw Warriors. Morrisonn,who
missed action with a concussion after taking a stiff check from Tri-City RW
Scott Kelman back in January, was selected to play in the WHL all-star game but
was replaced by Seattle Thunderbird rearguard Matt Spiller.

Blazers tough guy Colton Orr has yet to return to action after breaking his hand during his first game of the season. The Blazers have lost
four straight games for the first time this season.

NCAA

University of Denver winger Greg Barber e Read more»

Boston Bruins: Barbs Wired

by Shane Walsh
on

Like most youthful hockey players growing up in Western Canada, University of Denver sniper Greg Barber has always dreamt of someday playing in the NHL. Emulating his hockey heroes on the streets of Kelowna, British Columbia, Barber has always been a standout wherever he’s played. If sheer determination was worth its weight in Black & Gold, then tip the scales in his favor for a longstanding future with the Bruins organization.

A standout for the Victoria Salsa of the BCHL, Barber’s superb play in 1998-99 earned him a BCHL all-star appearance and the Boston Bruins 207th overall selection at the 1999 NHL entry draft. Playing alongside Martin Kariya, Barber notched 41 goals and 82 points in 60 games for Victoria that year. When reached at his home on draft day, Barber was both shocked and surprised that his life long dream had taken a positive step forward.

“I wasn’t expecting a call or anything like that,” said Barber in an interview with hockeysfuture. “I was hanging with friends at my house and was not paying any attention to the draft. I was pretty happy. It was unexpected, so I was kind of shocked.”

His play struggled somewhat the following year as a freshman for the University of Denver. Known for being a big goal scorer, his adjustment from the BCHL to the WCHA was tougher on him than anyone had expected. He finished second in rookie scoring for Denver netting 7 goals and 15 points in 40 games. As a sophomore, he had a knack for late-minute heroics as he tallied two third-period game-tying markers. He equaled his freshman totals of 7goa Read more»

Boston Bruins: Rookie Recap

by Shane Walsh
on

What does it really take to make it in the NHL? Heart? Determination? Skill? Patience?

Examining the Bruins young core of top prospects at the annual rookie tournament in Kitchener, Ontario last weekend, one gets an early impression of just how
hard these young guns are willing to work to fulfill their dreams of playing in the NHL.

The problem however, is that most of the Bruins young guns are shooting blanks!

“Nobody is really impressing me,” said Brad Davis a scout for the Edmonton Oilers. “Zdenek Kutlak is by far the best player on the ice for Boston, and he played a handful of games with the big club last year. That has to tell you of the caliber of players that are on the ice.”

Not all of Boston’s top prospects and invites were disappointing to watch all weekend. Carl Corazzini, a recent signing out of Boston University, impressed with his intense level of play.

“Carl’s
a guy who plays with heart,” said a Bruins scout who wished to remain anonymous.
“He shows up to play every night, and doesn’t take any shifts off. He’s a
great two-way forward who could be a big surprise at our main camp this fall.”

Invites
Ed Hill and Colton Orr both impressed with their high energy level of play.

“They don’t
come any more physical than Colton Orr,” said Davis. “Here’s a guy that transitioned
his game from defense to forward and did it successfully. Orr is the kind
of player that every team would love to have, but unfortunately because of
his skating, he may not get an opportunity to display what he Read more»

Top Prospects

  1. Dougie Hamilton
  2. Malcolm Subban
  3. Ryan Spooner
  4. Alexander Khokhlachev
  5. Jared Knight
  6. Niklas Svedberg
  7. Brian Ferlin
  8. Torey Krug
  9. Seth Griffith
  1. Matt Grzelcyk
  2. Zane Gothberg
  3. Anthony Camara
  4. Carter Camper
  5. Lars Volden
  6. David Warsofsky
  7. Zach Trotman
  8. Alexander Fallstrom
  9. Matt Bartkowski

Notable Prospects

  1. Matt Benning
  2. Ryan Button
  3. Chris Casto
  4. Maxim Chudinov
  5. Colby Cohen
  6. Tommy Cross
  7. Craig Cunningham
  8. Rob Flick
  9. Justin Florek
  1. Mark Goggin
  2. Colton Hargrove
  3. Michael Hutchinson
  4. Matthew Lindblad
  5. Kevan Miller
  6. Adam Morrison
  7. Rob O'Gara
  8. Tyler Randell
  9. Ben Sexton
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