By: Neil Simmons | Follow me on Twitter / X: @NSimmz
The Four Nations Face-Off deservedly commanded the hockey world’s collective attention throughout Valentine’s Day weekend. However, plenty more hockey was being played that deserves some love, especially for Boston Bruins fans. Two Bruins prospects in the NCAA ranks set career highs in scoring this past weekend. Another has been on a torrid pace since New Year’s and seemingly keeps getting better every game, and one more is finding chemistry with an elite playmaker on the best team in the country:
Ryan Walsh (C) – Cornell – Walsh erupted for back-to-back three-point nights against Brown and Yale over the weekend, propelling the Big Red to 6-1 and 5-3 victories. Walsh scored twice and logged an assist in each game, emphatically ending a five-game scoring drought.
His first-period assist against Yale on Saturday night made him the first Bruins prospect in College Hockey to make the 10 Goal – 10 Assist Club this season, and his goal in the second period (his final point of the weekend) gave him a new career high in scoring with 23 points. On top of all the points, Walsh won a staggering 35 of 46 faceoffs.
Chris Pelosi (C) – Quinnipiac – 2025 continues to be the year of Chris Pelosi. He followed up his first career three-point weekend with a three-point game against Union, with all three points (a goal and two assists) coming on the power play in a 7-2 thumping. He then added another power-play goal on Saturday in a 6-2 beating of RPI.
Pelosi is now up to 11 goals and 19 points for the Bobcats, with 13 of his points coming after the calendar turned to 2025. His eight goals since January 1st are tied for the most in the country among freshmen, beating out more prominent names like Cole Eiserman and Teddy Stiga. All the while winning 57.5% of faceoffs in that time.
Ty Gallagher (D) – Colorado College – A pair of assists for Gallagher on Friday night set a new career high in scoring for the senior defenseman with 23 points. Gallagher came into the night tied with his previous high of 21 points from his sophomore season at Boston University and broke the tie early in the first period when his point shot was tipped home. At this stage of the season, it’s doubtful that the Tigers can break into the NCAA tournament field unless they win their conference tournament. Still, Gallagher’s career season should catch some deserved attention in Providence.
Andre Gasseau (C) – Boston College – Gasseau notched a goal and an assist during BC’s weekend split with conference rivals UMass, building on his hottest run of play in 2025. He helped set up Gabe Perreault’s power play equalizer on Friday night when his shot was saved, and Perreault cleaned up the rebound. Perreault returned the favor on Saturday by setting Gasseau up for the icebreaker in Amherst, giving him points in five of six games.
Gasseau joined Ryan Walsh in the 10-10 club, with that exact number in both goals and assists. He’s been a consistent performer for BC throughout his three years with the squad, reaching the 10-10 mark each season, and he needs three more goals to set a career-high. His burgeoning chemistry with Perreault will be something to watch down the stretch, as Gasseau’s last four points have all involved Perreault factoring in the scoring.
Looking Ahead: Gasseau, Oskar Jellvik, and Dean Letourneau journey up I-89 to take on Vermont for two games. Dans Locmelis and UMass, surging up the Pairwise rankings into the NCAA tournament field, have a home-and-home with UNH. Philip Svedeback and Providence have Friday night off before welcoming UMass-Lowell on Saturday night, their sixth straight weekend against a Top-10 team, but this time, they only have to play them once.
Red-hot Ryan Walsh and Cornell welcome Clarkson and St. Lawrence to Ithaca this weekend. The former has significant ECAC implications, as Clarkson is second in the standings and six points ahead of the Big Red. Mason Langebrunner and Harvard host Union and RPI in Allston. Chris Pelosi, Elliott Groenewold, and conference leaders Quinnipiac host New Haven rivals Yale on Friday night and Brown on Saturday.
Casper Nassen plays host to Denver for the weekend as the defending National Champion Pioneers look to tune up for the NCHC conference tournament against Miami. Jake Schmaltz and the Fighting Sioux host Minnesota-Duluth for two games. North Dakota wants to create separation against the Pioneers in the standings, as Denver only trails by one point for fourth place and home ice in the conference tournament. Ty Gallagher and Colorado College are only two points behind North Dakota and travel to St Cloud State with a chance to jump Denver and UND this weekend with some favorable results. Beckett Hendrickson and the Golden Gophers are tied for second in the Big Ten, three points behind Michigan State. They’ll take on Ohio State, the team they’re tied with, for a pair at Mariucci Arena.
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