By: Neil Simmons | Follow me on Twitter / X: @NSimmz
While everyone’s attention was fixed on Thanksgiving, Football, and Black Friday shopping, the Boston Bruins college prospects turned in another weekend of solid performances. Oskar Jellvik has more points in the last two weeks than in the first month and is one of five college Bruins with an active point streak. Ryan Walsh is rolling at a point-per-game pace and added a shorthanded assist on Saturday. Jake Schmaltz continued to be an ace at the faceoff dot for NoDak and scored a crucial goal when they badly needed it. But they’re not the only guys in the Bruins system creating and building positive momentum every weekend:
Chris Pelosi (C) – Quinnipiac – Pelosi is starting to find his stride at the college level, and people are taking note. He recorded an assist on Saturday night against Cornell, creating the entire scoring opportunity by himself, initiating the rush, and opening the time and space his teammates needed to bury the puck. The assist was his third point in his last five games after recording just two in his first eight, and his improved play has earned him a spot on the US World Juniors preliminary roster.
Dans Locmelis (C) – UMass – Locmelis assisted on the opening goal for UMass in their 3-1 over Army on Friday, extending his point streak to four games and setting a new career high in scoring. His 12th assist of the season gave him 15 points on the year, surpassing his freshman year total of 14 points in 30 games. His point-per-game pace projects to blow by his freshman production, and the currently unranked Minutemen will need every one of them to stay in postseason contention.
Beckett Hendrickson (LW) – Minnesota – A move up the lineup for Hendrickson paid immediate dividends for the Golden Gophers during their weekend series against Alaska. Usually slotted into the third-line wing, Hendrickson was promoted to the top line and scored his first goal in 11 games on Friday night, a 1-1 tie. He followed up with an assist on the eventual game-winner as Minnesota pulled away in the third period for a 5-2 win. His output from this weekend matched his season to date, and there’s plenty of opportunity for him to build upon his momentum before tournament time.
Philip Svedeback (G) – Providence – Svedeback and the Friars spent the weekend at Lake Placid, competing in the Adirondack Winter Invitational, defeating Clarkson and St. Lawrence. Svedeback started the Friday night game against the 20th-ranked Golden Knights, making 23 saves in a 3-2 overtime victory. The Swedish netminder has seven wins with a career-high .920 save percentage in ten starts and has not recorded a loss since the season opener against North Dakota.
Looking Ahead: On Wednesday night, Gasseau, Jellvik, and Dean Letourneau have a standalone game with UConn on Chestnut Hill. The BC trio will look for payback after their 5-4 upset loss in Storrs last month. After that, it’s a Friday-Monday home-and-home with UMass-Lowell. Speaking of UMass, Dans Locmelis and the Minutemen have a Saturday-Wednesday home-and-home with 11th-ranked Boston University.
Jake Schmaltz and Casper Nassen will go head-to-head in NCHC conference play for two games at Miami. North Dakota is having an uneven year and looking to stabilize its momentum, while Miami needs to create some kind of positive movement. Ty Gallagher and Philip Svedeback also have a weekend tilt on tap in Providence. The Friars will be the third top-10 team Colorado College will have faced in four weekends.
Beckett Hendrickson will have a stiff test to build upon this past weekend as Minnesota plays host to the sixth-ranked Michigan Wolverines. Ryan Walsh and Cornell have a home-and-home with Colgate, and Mason Langenbrunner and the Crimson will host 20th-ranked Clarkson and St Lawrence. Wrapping up the ECAC contingent, Pelosi and Elliott Groenewold host Rensselaer and Union.
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