Bruins ‘excited’ about top prospect Mason Lohrei’s development

Sweeney: Bruins ‘excited’ about top prospect Mason Lohrei’s development originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

The Boston Bruins’ prospect pool ranks among the worst in the NHL. Some of that is a result of poor drafting. Another factor is the team’s lack of draft picks in recent years because the B’s have traded so many of them away.

But while the B’s aren’t stocked with a bunch of elite prospects, there are still some very good players in the organization who could make a meaningful impact at the NHL level in the near future.

One of them is Mason Lohrei.

The 22-year-old defenseman from Ohio State was a second-round pick of the Bruins in the 2020 NHL Draft. He was considered a bit of a reach at the time, but that criticism has quickly evaporated given how well he played for the Buckeyes over the last two seasons.

He shows tremendous puck-moving ability, excellent playmaking skills, poise in pressure moments and a steadily improving defensive game. His size — at 6-foot-4 and 205 pounds — is a plus, too.

After a very good sophomore season with the Buckeyes — during which he tallied 32 points (four goals, 28 assists) in 40 games — Lohrei made the transition to the AHL with the Providence Bruins toward the end of the 2022-23 campaign. He got five regular season and three playoff games worth of experience under his belt.

Could he make the Bruins’ roster with a strong training camp and preseason this fall? Yes, it’s absolutely possible.

“Mason has been right out in front that he expects to challenge for a spot this year,” Bruins general manager Don Sweeney told reporters Friday after the team’s last Development Camp session. “I think it was really important for him to get into Providence last year and play and be in a pro-environment, to know what he is able to get away with at the college level that may or may not translate at the pro level and then it’ll be another step. He’ll go through the progressions of Rookie Camp and play in some exhibition games, and…