By: Jake Ferraro | Follow me on Twitter/X @18Jxxx18
September has finally arrived, and that means the Providence Bruins will play hockey this month. On Sept. 26, Providence will host the Springfield Thunderbirds at Amica Mutual Pavilion in the team’s only preseason game before opening the 2026-27 American Hockey League regular season against the Utica Comets on Oct. 2. As Providence enters this season, questions remain about the team’s depth up front.
Forwards Georgii Merkulov, Patrick Brown, Riley Tufte, Matej Blumel, Fabian Lysell and John Farinacci all departed this offseason. Last season, Merkulov, Brown, Tufte, and Blumel were Providence’s top-four leading scorers. Providence is going to need players to raise their game immediately to make up for offensive production, and there are four forwards the team can rely on heavily to do so.
Brian Halonen
On July 1, Halonen signed with the Bruins organization. Halonen, 27, has mainly played in the AHL with the Utica Comets for the past five years. As a Comet, Halonen was excellent, recording 136 points in 217 games during his tenure. For the past three seasons, Halonen recorded a 20-goal season. Utica failed to make the playoffs last season, but Halonen was one of the team’s few bright spots.
Halonen’s 20 goals were tied for second on Utica’s roster, and his 34 points were the fourth-most on the team. Halonen was also named to the 2026 AHL All-Star Classic. Providence is going to need goal scoring up front, and Halonen certainly can provide the ability to.
Attilo Biasca
Biasca has played overseas in Switzerland since the 2015-16 hockey season. Last season, Biasca, 23, played for the NL’s HC Fribourg-Gotteron and recorded 27 points in 45 games. Biasca also played 18 games combined for Switzerland on the International stage and recorded five points. Biasca joined the Bruins organization on June 14 with an AAV of $980,000, which, as of now on Puckpedia, is the highest AAV on Providence’s roster.
With the highest AAV on Providence’s roster, Biasca will have to show why his talent in Switzerland earned him recognition for the Bruins to sign him to a high AAV for a player who hasn’t played in the NHL. However, Providence will be eager to see how Biasca can adapt to AHL speed.
Brendan Gaunce
Just like Halonen, Gaunce joined the Bruins organization on July 1. Gaunce, 32, has solid AHL experience, with two separate stints as captain of the Cleveland Monsters and recording 298 points in 426 games. When Brown departed this offseason to sign overseas in Germany, Providence lost a huge piece to its roster.
Brown was Providence’s captain for the past two seasons, and his 54 points last season were the third-most on the roster, and his +36 rating was the highest on the team’s roster. With Brown gone, Providence will look to someone to provide offensive production and leadership, and that is where Gaunce could be considered heavily.
Max Andreev
Before July ended, Providence signed Andreev to a one-year AHL contract. Andreev, 27, played just one game for Providence last season and was a mainstay in the ECHL with the Maine Mariners. Andreev was a huge piece of the Mariners’ roster last season, as his 62 points were tied for the most on the roster.
Along with being tied for the most points on Maine’s roster, Andreev’s 43 assists led the team. Andreev’s 14 points were the second-most on Maine’s roster during the 2026 Kelly Cup Playoffs. With a huge season in the ECHL, Providence is going to rely on Andreev to make the jump from excellent play in the AHL.
Dans Locmelis
Last season, Locmelis was having a solid season for Providence, recording 28 points in 43 games. Locmelis, 22, raised his game further by scoring two goals in four games for Team Latvia at the 2026 Winter Olympics. However, Locmelis had his season cut short at the Olympics after sustaining a shoulder injury, forcing him to miss the rest of Providence’s season.
Not having Locmelis in the lineup hurt Providence in the end as they were eliminated in the Atlantic Division Semifinals by Springfield. Locmelis will be eager for a huge bounce-back season after a season-ending injury. With a big season last season before the shoulder injury, there’s reason for Providence to rely on Locmelis to raise his game further and be one of the team’s top players.
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