Before the Bruins brace themselves for an eventful plunge into the free-agency pool this summer, the club first will size up the next generation of potential contributors in its pipeline with its 13th annual Development Camp, set to be held from Wednesday through Friday this week.
Here’s a look at the schedule for the three-day camp, which will be held at Warrior Ice Arena. All practices and on-ice sessions will be open to the public:
Wednesday, June 26 (Warrior Ice Arena, Brighton, MA)
-On-ice session (Group A), 11 a.m.
-On-ice session (Group B), 12 p.m.
-On-ice session (Group C), 1 p.m.
Thursday, June 27 (Warrior Ice Arena, Brighton, MA)
-On-ice session (Group A), 10:30 a.m.
-On-ice session (Group A & B), 11:15 a.m.
-On-ice session (Group B), 12:15 p.m.
Friday, June 28 (Warrior Ice Arena, Brighton, MA)
-On-ice session, 10:15 a.m.
Here is the full camp roster, separated by position:
Forwards: Samuel Asselin, Jack Becker, John Beecher, Matt Brown*, Nathan Burke*, Casey Dornbach*, Curtis Hall, Mike Hardman*, Jakub Lauko, Matias Mantykivi, Drew O'Connor*, Quinn Olson, Justin Richards*, Linus Sandin*, Jake Schmaltz, Pavel Shen, Oskar Steen, Jack Studnicka, Nate Sucese*, Nolan Walker*, Marek Zachar*
Defensemen: Axel Andersson, Victor Berglund, Cameron Clarke, Brandon Estes*, Josh Maniscalco*, Dustyn McFaul, Nick Wolff*, Cooper Zech
Goaltenders: James Corcoran*, Taylor Gauthier*, Kyle Keyser, Jeremy Swayman, Dan Vladar
*Indicates attendance to Development Camp is on an invite basis
Here are a few names to keep tabs on over the course of the three-day camp:
Jack Studnicka, Forward -
With
Urho Vaakanainen
not participating in Dev Camp, Studnicka stands as the big man on campus, with the dynamic pivot looking to crack the NHL roster with a strong showing at training camp in September. Even if he doesn’t make it up with Boston by October, there’s a good chance that Studnicka hits the ground running in his first full season of pro hockey down in the AHL, with the center coming off of an OHL campaign in which he tallied 83 points over 60 games with Oshawa and Niagara. A veteran of the last couple of dev camps, look for Studnicka to impress out on the ice this week.
Jakub Lauko, Forward:
What’s not to like about Lauko? He’s a dynamic player in the O-zone, thrived in his first year of North American hockey, loves Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones. What else do you need to know? In all seriousness, it will be good to see just how much the the 19-year-old forward has developed since proclaiming himself as one of the potential steals of the 2018 NHL Draft. After a year in which he helped the
Rouyn-Noranda Huskies capture the Memorial Cup (13 points over 19 games), Lauko could be ready to take a big step forward in 2019-20.
John Beecher, Forward:
Boston’s first-round pick (30th overall) in the 2019 NHL Draft will get his first taste of Boston starting on Wednesday. While he might have been overshadowed by his fellow centers in
Jack Hughes
and
Trevor Zegras
on the U.S. National Team Development Program’s U-18 squad, the Bruins noted multiple times up in Vancouver that Beecher has top-six potential and plenty of offensive upside. We’ll see what can he bring during camp, especially during conditioning drills.
John Beecher has some wheels, huh? pic.twitter.com/JZf0nOvGPZ
— Conor Ryan (@ConorRyan_93) June 22, 2019
Oskar Steen, Forward:
While Studnicka, Lauko and Beecher might stand at the forefront of Boston’s prospects at the forward position, Steen might be due for big things with this franchise after signing his entry-level deal back in May. A sixth-round pick in the 2016 NHL Draft, Steen has seen his stock rise over the years while playing in the
Swedish Hockey League, ranking 10th in the league in scoring this year with 37 points over 46 games.
Impressive stuff from the 21-year-old forward, given the fact that the nine players in front of him in the scoring department boast an average age of 30.4. In fact, the next player closest in age to Steen among the top 10 scorers in the SHL is still five years his senior.
A move over to Providence stands as the next step in Steen’s development, and he could thrive in his first taste of AHL hockey.
Samuel Asselin, Forward:
A new addition to Boston’s prospect pool after signing a contract earlier this month, Asselin has plenty of potential after a dominant final season in the QMJHL. The L’Assomption, Quebec native, who turned down a similar contract from Montreal, led the entire Q with 48 goals over 69 regular-season games with the Halifax Mooseheads and the Acadie-Bathurst Titan. He may not have been drafted, by the shifty center could be a major coup for the Bruins going forward.
Axel Andersson, Defenseman:
Boston’s first pick in the 2018 NHL Draft (57th overall), Andersson stands as the top prospect to watch on the blue line this week, especially with Vaakanainen not playing. He tallied five assists over 41 games with
Sodertalje SK in Sweden last season.
Jeremy Swayman & Kyle Keyser, Goaltenders:
It will be interesting to see which of these two netminders can raise their stock this season, especially with
Zane McIntyre’s
likely departure in free agency. There’s plenty to like from both of these goalies, with Swayman posting a .919 save percentage at Maine and Keyser finishing second overall in the OHL with a .915 save percentage.
Bruins announce 2019-20 schedule:
1. The Bruins will get thrown into the fire early on:
And once the regular season gets started, the B’s don’t really have much of a breather. Opening the year on the road for four games (@ Dallas 10/3, @ Arizona 10/5, @ Vegas, 10/8, @ Colorado, 10/10), Boston will then return to the friendly confines of TD Garden for its home opener against
P.K. Subban, Jack Hughes
and the New Jersey Devils on Oct. 12.
2. Bruins will be playing plenty of rested clubs over course of the season:
Shoutout to
for this interesting nugget, which tabs Boston as being on the wrong end of a favorable rest schedule in 2019-20, especially when it comes to playing teams that have had a day-plus off.
3. A few familiar face late
For most of the 2018-19 season, the Bruins and Maple Leafs traded punches while clawing up the Atlantic ladder, with Boston holding off its Original Six foe in pursuit of the second seed in the division.
And yet, the last time both teams faced off during the regular season was back on Jan. 12, 2019.
Yawn.
Thankfully, the Bruins and Leafs — once again expected to battle with the Lightning for supremacy in the Atlantic — will meet at least once in the final weeks of the 2019-20 campaign, with Boston hosting Toronto on March 14. That could be a biiiiiig matchup if both teams are still fighting for playoff positioning.
4. Another grueling February
The Bruins ran with a stacked schedule over the course of the new year in 2019, posting a record of 25-6-5 starting at the Winter Classic and carrying all the way into the final weeks of March.
While Boston will avoid playing on New Year’s Day this time, the B’s will still have to deal with a grueling end to the regular season, highlighted by a February that will see Boston play 14 games over 29 days — including five back-to-back slates and a trek out to Western Canada. While Boston managed to catch fire at the perfect time last year, a bump in the road during such a heavy volume of games always runs the risk of derailing a playoff run in short order.
5. Here’s the full schedule:
OCTOBER
Thursday, October 3 @ Dallas, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, October 5 @ Arizona, 6 p.m.
Tuesday, October 8 @ Vegas, 7 p.m.
Thursday, October 10 @ Colorado, 7 p.m.
Saturday, October 12 vs. New Jersey, 7 p.m.
Monday, October 14 vs. Anaheim, 1 p.m.
Thursday, October 17 vs. Tampa Bay, 7 p.m.
Saturday, October 19 @ Toronto, 7 p.m.
Tuesday, October 22 vs. Toronto, 7 p.m.
Saturday, October 26 vs. St. Louis, 7 p.m.
Sunday, October 27 @ N.Y. Rangers, 7 p.m.
Tuesday, October 29 vs. San Jose, 7 p.m.
NOVEMBER
Saturday, November 2 vs. Ottawa, 7 p.m.
Monday, November 4 vs. Pittsburgh, 7 p.m.
Tuesday, November 5 @ Montreal, 7 p.m.
Friday, November 8 @ Detroit, 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, November 10 vs. Philadelphia, 7 p.m.
Tuesday, November 12 vs. Florida, 7 p.m.
Friday, November 15 @ Toronto, 7 p.m.
Saturday, November 16 vs. Washington, 7 p.m.
Tuesday, November 19 @ New Jersey, 7 p.m.
Thursday, November 21 vs. Buffalo, 7 p.m.
Saturday, November 23 vs. Minnesota, 7 p.m.
Tuesday, November 26 @ Montreal, 7 p.m.
Wednesday, November 27 @ Ottawa, 7 p.m.
Friday, November 29 vs. N.Y. Rangers 1 p.m.
DECEMBER
Sunday, December 1 vs. Montreal, 7 p.m.
Tuesday, December 3 vs. Carolina, 7 p.m.
Thursday, December 5 vs. Chicago, 7 p.m.
Saturday, December 7 vs. Colorado, 7 p.m.
Monday, December 9 @ Ottawa, 7:30 p.m.
Wednesday, December 11 @ Washington, 7 p.m.
Thursday, December 12 @ Tampa Bay, 7 p.m.
Saturday, December 14 @ Florida, 7 p.m.
Tuesday, December 17 vs. Los Angeles, 7 p.m.
Thursday, December 19 vs. N.Y. Islanders, 7 p.m.
Saturday, December 21 vs. Nashville, 7 p.m.
Monday, December 23 vs. Washington, 7 p.m.
Friday, December 27 @ Buffalo, 7 p.m.
Sunday, December 29 vs. Buffalo, 7 p.m.
Tuesday, December 31 @ New Jersey, 1 p.m.
JANUARY
Thursday, January 2 vs. Columbus, 7 p.m.
Saturday, January 4 vs. Edmonton, 1 p.m.
Tuesday, January 7 @ Nashville, 7 p.m.
Thursday, January 9 vs. Winnipeg, 7 p.m.
Saturday, January 11 @ N.Y. Islanders, 7 p.m.
Monday, January 13 @ Philadelphia, 7 p.m.
Tuesday, January 14 @ Columbus, 7 p.m.
Thursday, January 16 vs. Pittsburgh, 7 p.m.
Sunday, January 19 @ Pittsburgh, 12:30 p.m.
Tuesday, January 21 vs. Vegas, 7 p.m.
Friday, January 31 @ Winnipeg, 7 p.m.
FEBRUARY
Saturday, February 1 @ Minnesota, 7 p.m.
Tuesday, February 4 vs. Vancouver, 7 p.m.
Wednesday, February 5 @ Chicago, 7 p.m.
Saturday, February 8 vs. Arizona, 3 p.m.
Sunday, February 9 @ Detroit, 12:30 p.m.
Wednesday, February 12 vs. Montreal, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, February 15 vs. Detroit, 1 p.m.
Sunday, February 16 @ N.Y. Rangers, 3:30 p.m.
Wednesday, February 19 @ Edmonton, 6:30 p.m.
Friday, February 21 @ Calgary, 7 p.m.
Saturday, February 22 @ Vancouver, 7 p.m.
Tuesday, February 25 vs. Calgary, 7 p.m.
Thursday, February 27 vs. Dallas, 7 p.m.
Saturday, February 29 @ N.Y. Islanders, 1 p.m.
MARCH
Tuesday, March 3 @ Tampa Bay, 7 p.m.
Thursday, March 5 @ Florida, 7 p.m.
Saturday, March 7 vs. Tampa Bay, 7 p.m.
Tuesday, March 10 @ Philadelphia, 7 p.m.
Friday, March 13 @ Buffalo, 7 p.m.
Saturday, March 14 vs. Toronto, 7 p.m.
Monday, March 16 vs. Columbus, 7 p.m.
Wednesday, March 18 @ Anaheim, 7 p.m.
Thursday, March 19 @ Los Angeles, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, March 21 @ San Jose, 7:30 p.m.
Tuesday, March 24 vs. Detroit, 7 p.m.
Thursday, March 26 vs. Ottawa, 7 p.m.
Saturday, March 28 vs. Florida, 7 p.m.
Tuesday, March 31 @ Carolina, 7 p.m.
APRIL
Thursday, April 2 @ St. Louis, 7 p.m.
Saturday, April 4 vs. Carolina, 7 p.m.
BC’s York, Wickenheiser lead new Hockey Hall of Fame Class
The Hockey Hall of Fame announced its 2019 Class on Tuesday evening, with Boston College head coach
Jerry York
set to be enshrined in Toronto in the “Builders” category after becoming the first NCAA hockey coach to reach 1,000 wins.
York, who has won five NCAA D-I championships at Bowling Green and Boston College, was joined in the Builders category by Penguins GM
Jim Rutherford,
who helped orchestrate three Stanley Cup titles for both the Hurricanes (2006) and Penguins (2016, 2017).
Haley
Wickenheiser
leads the class when it comes to players, with the former pivot winning four Olympic gold medals while representing Canada, along with seven gold medals at IIHF world championships. Wickenheiser, who tallied 379 points in 276 international games with Canada, is the seventh woman named to the Hockey Hall of Fame.
Other entrants include defenseman
Sergei Zubov,
longtime Habs center
Guy Carbonneau
and
Vaclav Nedomansky
, who was the first pro hockey player
from an Eastern European communist country to defect to North America.
Some HHOF candidates passed over in this latest round of voting include
Daniel Alfredsson, Jeremy Roenick, Keith Tkachuk
and
Rod Brind’Amour
.