Boston Bruins Draft Review

The Boston Bruins have been notorious for building through the draft. Many years of building through the draft and developing prospects  patiently has begun to yeild results. Recent graduates like Mikael Granlund, Morgan Rielly, Jonas Brodin and Nikita Kucherov have begun seeing success in the pro leagues and contributing the the big club. With Alexander Barkov, Jonathan Drouin, Nickolas Deslauriers and Markus Granlund (brother of Mikael) all set to compete for a roster spot this fall - the Bruins are beginning to see their patience pay off. With so much talent heading posied to make the big jump in the coming years the Bruins have zoned in on a few areas of opportunity. Outside of Voracek, there has been a need for high end right wing prospect in the system. As it stands the Bruins pipeline is covered with blue-chip prospects for both left wing and center. The Boston Bruins had one clear mandate heading into the 2015 MRFHL draft - that was to shore up the right wing prospect pipeline with high end blue chip spects. Ric Flair and company sucessfully executed their draft plan flawless. Here are the Boston Bruins 2015 selections:

(14) Timo Meier, RW, 6-1, 209 lbs

With Timo lingering around after the top 10 the Bruins wasted no time to secure the 14^th overall pick. Flair made a bold move by shipping out top end talent like Barbashev and Pasternak to land Timo.  “We really love this kids game, we have a big gap in the farm system on the right side and we used this draft to address it.”  Timo has it all, he is big, skilled and skates well.

Comparable: Marian Hossa

(16) Evgeny Svechnikov, RW, 6-3, 205 lbs

With Timo in the fold, the Bruins selected, Evgeny Svechnikov. An absolute snipper with a soft set a hands. With only one year under his belt of North American hockey its almost unfathomable of what he will be capable of. In 55 GP he managed to put up 78 points for Cape Breton of the QMJHL. “We are real excited about Evgeny, sky is the limit with this kid.” 

Comparable: Rick Nash

(25) Brock Boeser, RW, 6-1, 192 lbs

Bruins were happy to see Brock Boeser still around at 25^th overall.  Boston wanted to address their farm systems Right Wing gap but after selecting two right wingers early in the draft I was best player available. Boeser fit the bill having character and skill, projected as a  dynamic offensive winger and goal scorer.

Comparable: Patrick Sharpe

(26) Gabriel Carlsson, D, 6-4, 183 lbs

With three talented forward selected the Bruins opted for stay at home defencemen Gabriel Carlsson. The big Swed was not the sexiest player available however his a well-rounded game and blend of good size, skill and hockey sense was a safe pick for the Bruins.

Vince Dunn, D, 6-0, 185 lbs

After taking the stay at home defender Carlsson, the Bruins followed it up with virtually a polar opposite selection in Vince Dunn. The Bruins get one of the most pure offensive defencemen in the draft. The high flying offensively gifted Vince Dunn of Niagra Ice Dogs ended his 2015 campaign scoring 31 pts in the final 24 GP. “We feel this kid is one of the best skaters in the draft.” The Bruins were more than happy to select Dunn whom they feel scouts have been over critical of his size.

Comparable: Mike Green

(55) Alexander Dergachev, RW, 6-4, 201 lbs

In selecting Alexander Dergachev at 55 some might say they went off the board. Ric Flair and the coaching staff wanted this guy and were able to secure him – end of story. “We had this kid on our radar since day one. We feel with the right development and guidance he can turn out to be something special.”  Bruins might be right, Dergachev they get one of the rawest talented in the draft. At a 6-4, he has a very intriguing combination of skill and size. Dergachev is already a good skater and brings a hard-nosed brand of hockey not usually associated with Russian hockey. With lots of prospects in the system ready to take the next step the Bruins will be very patient with Dergachev and are well positioned to let him develop at his own pace. Dergachev can become anything from a from a dud to stud – this past draft one scout dubbed him the “Russian Lawson Crouse”.

(59) Radovan Bondra: LW, 6-5, 218 lbs

The Bruins continued to go off the board at #59 selecting Radovan Bondra. To the Bruins credit this was their very last pick in the 2015 entry draft. In Bondra they get a massive power winger who is full of potential. Already 6-5 and 220 pounds, he saw some limited exposure at the U20 World Juniors as one of two 17 year olds.  The Bruins are taking a long view with Radovan and hope he can develop into top six material. “We know he has some developing to do but he is already a great skater and can play defence. Don’t be surprised if you see him sooner than you think. He is still very young still and we know he will only get better.”