By: Mark Allred | Follow me on Twitter / X @BlackAndGold277
Last night at the Amica Mutual Pavilion in downtown Providence, Rhode Island, the Providence Bruins hosted the visiting Charlotte Checkers. The top minor-pro affiliate of the Boston Bruins came away with a 4-0 victory in front of 7,894 faithful in attendance. Bruins starting goaltender Brandon Bussi stopped all 23 Checkers shots for his fifth shutout of the season, which is an American Hockey League career high for the 26-year-old Long Island, New York native.
The Boston Bruins have been active lately, signing players who have left their NCAA programs and are turning their sights to professional hockey development and closer steps to the National Hockey League. Latvian native Dans Locmelis, who signed a three-year entry-level contract on April 1st, 2025, made his pro debut for the Bruins’ top minor-pro affiliate last night and quickly impressed.
Locmelis, a 21-year-old center, played NCAA hockey for the University of Massachusetts for the last two seasons. While attending UMass, the former 2022 fourth-round selection of the B’s appeared in 70 games at the collegiate level, posting 15-32-47 numbers. In his AHL debut, the 6′-1″, 180-pound forward didn’t waste any time making his mark on a professional hockey scoresheet.
Providence got on the board first in last night’s game, scoring at the 1:59 mark of the opening frame courtesy of Bruins forward prospect Riley Duran, who scored his 12th of the season. Locmelis got the primary assist on the Duran goal when he wrapped the puck around the Checkers net, finding Duran at the top of the crease snapping the puck past Charlotte goaltender Kaapo Kahkonen for the 1-0 go-ahead. Locmelis centered the third line last night against Charlotte alongside fellow B’s prospect forward Duran on the left side and veteran forward Tyler Pitlick on the right.
It was good to see Locmelis get into all situations last night in his AHL debut game vs. Charlotte. He played well in all three zones and didn’t look out of place on the power play and the penalty kill. Dans has decent speed, creativity, and a good stick to break up opposing plays in the lane. It will be interesting to see how Providence Bruins head coach Ryan Mougenel continues to use the B’s prospect as the 2024-25 season winds down with six games remaining.
The AHL B’s are back in action tonight for game two of three on the weekend, shifting their focus to a road game at the Adirondack Bank Center in Utica, New York, to face the Utica Comets. Providence leads the regular season series over the North Division Comets with a 3-2-0 record, where the Bruins have outscored Utica 15-13. Tonight’s game can be streamed for free via the official FloHockey Facebook, Twitter / X, and YouTube social platforms. Puck drop is set for 7pm, and the Providence team looks to make it two consecutive victories with a solid road effort in the Empire State this evening.
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