Over the course of the 2023–24 NHL season, the Boston Bruins have effectively integrated a number of their best prospects into their squad.
Following impressive performances in training camp and the preseason, rookie centers Johnny Beecher and Matthew Poitras earned a spot on the Opening Night roster. Although he began the season with the AHL’s Providence Bruins, rookie defenseman Mason Lohrei has performed admirably in his 27 games with Boston. Georgii Merkulov, a forward prospect, was called up by the Bruins for a few games in late December or early January. At the time, he was the fourth-leading scorer in the AHL and won the December AHL Player of the Month award.
Who might be the next player out of Providence to head up I-95 to Boston and have an impact for the Bruins?
Fabian Lysell should be the one.
This powerful offensive player is the first-round pick (2021) of the Bruins. He moves quickly through the neutral zone, which puts a lot of pressure on the opposition defensemen. With a terrific shot and an amazing skill set, he can create his own offense and is a gifted facilitator.
Lysell is having a fantastic offensive season with the P-Bruins. In 37 games, he has amassed 30 points (11 goals, 19 assists). In his last 12 games, he has nine assists and four goals. Compared to the 0.67 points per game he scored in the AHL the previous season, his 0.81 points per game is a significant increase.
On Friday, December 29, Lysell scored a goal against the Utica Comets that demonstrated his extraordinary attacking ability:
Maybe it doesn’t happen in the immediate future, but the Bruins should give Lysell a chance to show what he can do at the NHL level before the March 8 trade deadline.
The Bruins need to see what they have in this player. And, honestly, they could use another player with his kind of scoring ability. Not only can Lysell score goals with an excellent shot, he’s a very good playmaker as well. For example, he has tallied at least one assist in eight of his last 12 games. He makes things happen with the puck thanks to his speed, passing and aggressiveness in the attacking zone.
The Bruins are on a hot streak offensively right now with a league-leading 67 goals in 16 games since the holiday break ended Dec. 27. Depth is important, and the Bruins cannot afford to be playing some of their veterans so many minutes during the second half of the regular season. Doing so could leave them with less gas in the tank come playoff time. Lysell can take some of those minutes and give the Bruins a secondary scoring boost.
The Bruins would be wise to target a middle-six wing who can score goals ahead of the trade deadline. The ideal scenario is filling that need internally, and Lysell is arguably the best candidate for it. If Lysell comes up, makes his debut and plays well, the Bruins would have much-needed scoring depth on the wing.
That scenario also would improve Lysell’s trade value. The Bruins don’t have a lot of draft picks (no 2024 first-rounder, no second-rounders in 2024 and 2025, etc.) and their prospect pool ranks in the bottom third of the league in the minds of most experts.
They don’t have a ton of high-quality assets to outbid the rest of the league for the top players who might be available before the trade deadline. The B’s need these prospects to show they can play in the NHL, and that’s one of the biggest reasons to give Lysell a chance in the short term.
Montgomery has done a great job developing young players in his short time with the Bruins. Not only have Poitras, Beecher and Lohrei shown flashes of exciting potential, but Trent Frederic and Pavel Zacha have also taken huge strides under Montgomery.