Day One of Boston Bruins Development Camp: Recap

By: Tom Calautti | Follow me on Twitter @TCalauttis

The first day of Boston Bruins Development Camp is in the books. Monday morning saw all of the Black and Gold’s most promising prospects descend upon Warrior Ice Arena to prove their mettle to management, coaches, and fans.

Development Camp comes just days after the Bruins selected six new skaters in the 2025 NHL Draft. Each of those players, along with Boston’s more established young talent, took the ice in Brighton and made their impression on the organization. Here’s how it went down:

Travel Delays Won’t Stop Hagens/Moore

There was understandable frustration in the press box when the Boston Bruins announced via their official Twitter account that first and second-round picks James Hagens and Will Moore would not be skating due to travel delays. That brief bout of sadness was put to bed when the two Boston College Eagles suited up and stepped on the ice for the 9:50 forwards session.

The duo traveled together from LA (the site of the NHL Draft) and fought flight delays and some ‘travel errors’ to get to Boston.

“We got in at four in the morning,” said second-round draft pick Will Moore about the journey he and Hagens took across the country. “Despite me and James’ travel errors we made it and we’re excited to be here.”

According to Bruins Player Development Coordinator Adam McQuaid, the team gave its two newest draft picks the opportunity to skip the first session of camp, given their issues with getting to Boston. Both players had no interest in missing a chance to don the spoked-B.

“When you have a chance to put on the Bruin jersey, you can’t say no,” said Hagens. “It doesn’t matter what flight delays or how much sleep you get, this is a dream come true.”

Hagens then dropped the quote of the day when he said, “You’d have to cut off my leg to tell me I couldn’t get out on that ice.”

Letourneau Tells All

After the arrival of Hagens, the second biggest storyline of the day was how 2024 first-round pick Dean Letourneau would address his freshman season at Boston College. The 6’7 center shed some light on what went wrong for him in his first NCAA season.

“Obviously, the numbers weren’t where I wanted them to be,” said Letourneau during his media scrum. “I was playing the first half of the year with a broken hand…I had surgery at Christmas time, and the second half of the year, I was feeling 100 percent.”

After divulging his early-season injury, the hulking forward talked about the role he played for the Eagles and how that play style impacted his game.

“I was put into a role that was a little new,” said Letourneau. “But overall, I think I learned a lot of things that I need to work on in my game that will definitely help me next year when maybe I get put in a more offensive role and have more opportunity.”

Despite the rocky start to his college career, the Ontario native still has faith in his game and expects to be in a better position to contribute offensively next season.

“(I want to be) an offensive leader, be put in a more offensive role, and counted on to help the team win and score some goals. I think I’m going to try to push for that role this year.”

An Introduction to Vashek Blanar

One of the most interesting moments of the NHL Draft was when the Boston Bruins selected Vashek Blanar with the 100th overall pick. There was no internet footprint on the Colorado-born defenseman, and even a website as extensive as Eliteprospects didn’t provide much information.

The media got to meet Blanar in the flesh after Monday’s skate, and he provided some much-needed context on his background.

According to the defenseman, he was born in Colorado to Czech parents, then moved to the Czech Republic at the age of four and has remained there ever since. You might be wondering why his parents chose Colorado to have their son. According to Blanar, the answer was simple.

“My Dad was a skier and moved to Aspen to ski,” said Blanar. “My mom, I think she was just traveling with her friends, and they met there.”

For those who are unfamiliar with the 18-year-old defenseman, he skated in the J18 Region League in Sweden, posting 6-15-21 in 38 games. He gave reporters an insight into how he views himself as a player and what traits define him.

“I feel like I’m a two-way defenseman who plays pretty offensively,” said Blanar when asked about his game. “I’m good on the puck, and I’ve started playing very physical the past few months.”

Blanar was one of the standouts at camp in regards to his on-ice performance. His 6’4 frame immediately jumps out at you, but it’s his skating ability and agility that really make him an interesting prospect. He was easily the most fluid and mobile of the defensemen who took the ice on Monday afternoon.

Defensemen his size aren’t supposed to move that well, and the Bruins’ scouting team may have found a diamond in the rough with this pick.

Loose Pucks

• The biggest criticism of Andre Gasseau has been his speed, but that appears to be improving. The Boston College Eagle showed off enhanced lateral quickness during some of the skating drills, and his first step was more explosive than last year
• Will Zellers has an absolutely lethal release. It’s rare to see scoring talent this refined at such a young age, but man is he fun to watch. It’s easy to see why he scored 44 goals in the USHL.
• 6’5 Kristian Kostadinski has improved his skating as well. The Boston College commit has all the physical tools to be a solid shutdown defenseman, but there were questions about his mobility. He’s still a work in progress but he’s come a long way.
• Chris Pelsoi seems like he’s fine-tuned his game. He looks like he’s gotten bigger, stronger, and more confident over the last year. He’s one of Boston’s more under-the-radar prospects who could make a big jump this season.
• Oskar Jellvik isn’t at camp this summer because he’s recovering from shoulder surgery he underwent over the winter. McQuaid said he expects him to be ‘on track’ for his senior season at BC.