If there’s one word to describe 24-year-old Bruins defenseman Mason Lohrei, it would be “confident.”
Not cocky or showy in a way that some players display when it's largely false bravado. The young D-man is simply confident in himself, of course, just as every NHL player should be, but Lohrei is also a full believer in the high skill game and elite offensive abilities that he brings to the back end. It’s clear watching his skating, shooting and stickhandling that Lohrei has always been one of the most skilled guys on the ice at pretty much all times, and he stands out on the back end with those polished skills.
I'd be surprised if @Mason_lohrei20 played another game in the AHL and the Bruins don't make a trade soon with one of these teams that need DMan. 1st NHL goal for Lohrei. pic.twitter.com/4wPO3AG0zw
— BucciOT.Com (@Buccigross) November 7, 2023
With that can come some high-risk plays that backfire and some tough nights when mistakes end up in the back of the net, though, and that can definitely be a more frequent occurrence for a young defenseman still making his way through the NHL level. That pretty much perfectly describes Lohrei while navigating his first full NHL season and taking on a much bigger workload in the second half of the year when both Hampus Lindholm and Charlie McAvoy went down with injuries.
Lohrei was a prime example of that this past season for the Black and Gold when he finished with a minus-43 mark that was the worst plus/minus for any player in the league last season, finishing well below Tyler Bertuzzi and Rasmus Andersson for that “honor.” It’s something that people in hockey circles joke around as a golf leaderboard, but make no mistake, it wasn’t something that Lohrei enjoyed seeing as things snowballed on him in the second half of the season.
Hello Friends…..Truly A Sunday for the Ages!! Our 2025 NHL #Masters champion was an incredible -25 in his final round to finish at -43 and earn #TheGreenJacket with a 4 stroke victory. Simply put…he DOMINATED.
— Mike Commodore (@commie22) April 18, 2025
Congratulations Mason “Big Bird” Lohrei..you are the 2025 NHL… pic.twitter.com/HaWTnLXlZv
“When you’re in it, it sucks…losing games and stuff. Even now it’s frustrating. Obviously, you’ve got to learn from it and improve,” admitted Lohrei to the Boston Sports Journal in the closing days of the NHL regular season. “You come out the other side better. But first of all, you never want to be where I’m at [in plus/minus]. Plain and simple. Nobody ever wants to be there. It’s embarrassing and frustrating. Obviously, the stuff is situational, but you never want to be there. Definitely motivating to show that’s not who I am and where I am going to be. Nobody is going to say they don’t care [about his plus/minus].
“I just want to keep improving my game in all facets of it. That’s where I’ve always been every summer. I want to become a very well-rounded defenseman in this league and I just focus on stuff that will help me improve that. [Improving in the defensive zone] is something I’ve worked on a lot since becoming a defenseman and a lot of it comes with experience. You play so many games against the best players in the world and maybe it’s a consistency thing, I think. I do know that I can defend in the D-zone and have a good stick and close hard and be physical. Then get the puck, break out with it and get out of the D-zone. That is something that I want to keep working on into the future.”
Some of it was situational moments reacting split-second on when (or when not) to pinch, some of it was being overpowered in the defensive zone at times and some of it was simply learning puck management against the best hockey players in the world.
But one thing that’s for certain is that a hockey player has to be pretty darn to even get a chance to rack up that kind of a plus/minus with players like Bertuzzi, Connor Bedard, Steven Stamkos and Mack Celebrini in the bottom-10 with him. The other thing that’s a lead pipe lock when it comes to Lohrei is that he still has lofty goals for himself that go beyond being the most offensively gifted D-man for the Bruins after leading them with five goals and 33 points in 77 games this past season.
“In junior and in college I’ve played PK, 5-on-5 and at the end of games. All situations and a lot of minutes and that’s the player that I want to be. I wouldn’t say that I’m a player that’s just always thinking offense,” said Lohrei to the Boston Sports Journal. “I like to be offensive and jump up in the play. That’s the fun part of the game.
“But it’s about bearing down defensively when it’s not a clean breakout or maybe when you get pinned down in your zone. Making the big play that way closing a play out and getting the puck to the forwards. Those are still big plays in the game. It’s all learning experience. I think I do a pretty good job of staying level-headed and moving on to the next play. It’s important no matter what happens. Bad play. Great play. You’ve got to stay level-headed and do that whatever the situation.”
Part of Lohrei’s excellent makeup as a defenseman allows him to go right back to his strengths and his skills as a player even in the face of a recent bad outcome, but the youngster also admitted to leaning on veteran guys to help him push through.
Lohrei credited Nikita Zadorov as a veteran guy who’s helped him through some of the tough times over the past season, and said Brad Marchand was another key person he would lean on when things weren’t going well. The happy ending to this story is the way things have gone for Lohrei at the IIHF World Championships, where he’s been posted a goal and three points along with a plus-4 while playing for Team USA with Andrew Peeke and Jeremy Swayman.
ONE TIMERS
• Interesting report from Friend of Haggs Jimmy Murphy, who said that Rick Tocchet wasn’t too hot on the Bruins head coaching job in part because Don Sweeney is entering the last year of his contract in a bit of a lame duck situation if he isn’t extended as general manager. Tocchet was mentioned prominently in the rumors around the Flyers head coaching job, so there’s not really any shock he ended up choosing a Philadelphia gig he’d been linked to since he and the Vancouver Canucks parted ways.
🚨 Sources reveal Rick Tocchet didn’t pursue the Bruins’ head coach role due to uncertainty around GM Don Sweeney’s future and firing record.
— RG (@TheRGMedia) May 18, 2025
via @MurphysLaw74
Full story ➡️ https://t.co/vo2AKrGGoZ
Still, it’s hard to imagine an established NHL head coach who’s generated interest around the league walking into an unresolved situation, given how quickly things can change whenever there’s turnover at the top of the front office.
• All credit due to Brad Marchand, who continues to build a reputation on his Game 7 performances after notching three points in Florida’s blowout win over the Maple Leafs in advancing to the Eastern Conference Finals. Marchand is tied for the team lead with 12 points in 12 games during these playoffs and a plus-11 while tearing it up with fellow third liners Eetu Luostiranen and Anton Lundell and has garnered more and more playing time for Florida as time has gone on.
Brad Marchand has cemented his legacy as the THE Leaf-killer 🥶 pic.twitter.com/GxUATaXPai
— Gino Hard (@GinoHard_) May 19, 2025
The second-round playoff win for the Panthers also pretty much cinches Marchand will get the Bruins a 2028 first-round pick after Florida won the first two rounds of the playoffs and Marchand has played in all 12 games thus far. Barring some kind of crazy injury and two very long playoff series for the Panthers, the 37-year-old Marchand has been everything Florida would have hoped for him to be while leading Florida’s experienced, battle-hardened bunch on another Cup run.