Latest news with #Lohrei
Boston Globe
08-05-2025
- Sport
- Boston Globe
By missing the playoffs the Bruins got an early summer vacation, but not these seven playing in the World Championship
Coming off an exceptional season (43 goals, 106 points) in which he ascended to Pastrnak has a long history of international play dating to 2012 at the under-17 Worlds. In 70 games representing Czechia (nee: Czech Republic), he has 20 goals and 56 points. Joining Pastrnak on the Czech roster will be fellow winger Jakub Lauko. This is Lauko's first time representing his country at the senior level, though he suited up 29 times (13 goals, 20 points) in junior tournaments. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Pavel Zacha, a member of last year's gold medal team, will not participate this time around as he recovers from a nonsurgical procedure. Advertisement Three Bruins will represent the United States in the nightcap of the doubleheader at Jyske Bank Boxen. Goalie Jeremy Swayman and defensemen Andrew Peeke and Mason Lohrei will face host Denmark in the opener. 'I want to keep my strength and conditioning up,' said Swayman, who was part of the American team at the 4 Nations Face-Off. 'I want to be one of the best athletes in the room, and I want to push my teammates, I want to push myself, and I know that that's going to get us success.' Advertisement Swayman also donned the red, white, and blue at the 2022 Worlds, compiling a 4-3 record as the Americans finished fourth. This will be Peeke's second appearance at the World Championship. He collected six assists in 10 games in 2022. This will be Lohrei's first time playing for Uncle Sam's skaters. Lohrei's workload took a huge jump this season, playing in 77 games and registering five goals and 33 points. With the Bruins' defensive corps pared by injuries and trades, Lohrei stepped up and obviously caught the eye of Team USA's decision makers. His offensive flair is obvious and cutting down on turnovers will be a priority for the pending restricted free agent. 'I want to be a two-way, elite defenseman in this league. And I think just continuing to build and work on that stuff and be more consistent is something that I really want to focus on,' he said. 'So, I mean, going into the summer and stuff, I'm going to work on my explosiveness, feet, stuff like that, shot. But yeah, really, it's just about coming back and being a more consistent player here.' Related : Elias Lindholm will be representing Sweden for the fourth time at the World Championship but first since 2019. In 26 tournament games, he has eight goals, 19 points, and a gold medal from 2017. A summer back injury was part of the reason Advertisement Dans Locmelis will play for Latvia for the third consecutive World Championship. It will be Locmelis's third team this calendar year. After the forward wrapped up his UMass career (47 points in 70 games), he joined the Providence Bruins and had three goals and 12 points in six games. A fourth-round pick in 2022, Locmelis had a pair of goals in 14 previous World Championship games. Jim McBride can be reached at
New York Times
08-04-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Bruins offseason rebuild will be huge with how few players are under contract
Don Sweeney has executed the rebuild's simplest part, though the Boston Bruins general manager may disagree if you call trading 2,549 games of Black-and-Gold experience 'easy.' The hard part of replacing Brad Marchand, Brandon Carlo, Charlie Coyle, Trent Frederic, Justin Brazeau and Max Jones, all while repairing everything else that went sideways in 2024-25, is coming. Consider that of the 20 roster spots occupied on game days, only 11 project to be populated by players currently under contract in 2025-26. The difficulty of addressing these vacancies ranges from straightforward to just about impossible. For this exercise, we'll start with the simple stuff: Five players who should be on next year's roster will reach restricted free agency on July 1: Morgan Geekie, Mason Lohrei, Jakub Lauko, Johnny Beecher and Marat Khusnutdinov. Advertisement Of this cohort, extending the 22-year-old Khusnutdinov should be the most basic transaction. The former Minnesota Wild forward is coming off his entry-level contract, and he does not have arbitration rights. Typically, a player of his profile (five goals and four assists in 87 career games) earns a two-year bridge contract with a modest bump from his entry-level compensation. Beecher, 24, is also coming out of entry level. The 2019 first-rounder has played center and left wing on the fourth line. He is averaging 1:32 of ice time on the penalty kill, third-most among team forwards. But Beecher hasn't scored a goal since Jan. 18. The fourth line appears to be his ceiling. Like Khusnutdinov, a two-year extension at short money is likely for Beecher. Lauko, 25, is exiting a two-year, $1.575 million second contract. He has three goals and five assists this season between the Bruins and Wild. While Lauko has arbitration rights, his production would not necessarily help him in a hearing. He is looking at short term, fourth-line money. If Beecher and Lauko re-sign, they could skate with Mark Kastelic on the fourth line. Lohrei leads team defensemen with 33 points. The 24-year-old could be the Bruins' long-term point man on the No. 1 power-play unit. He is creative and fearless on offense. Defensively, Lohrei has work to do. He has been on the ice for 68 five-on-five opposing goals, according to Natural Stat Trick, seventh-most among NHL defensemen. That makes projecting Lohrei's next deal a tricky exercise. Lohrei will have arbitration rights. His points will serve him well. But it's not easy for a youngster like Lohrei to attend a hearing and have his employer disclose his shortcomings. If the Bruins are confident Lohrei will improve his defense, they could be interested in a long-term agreement. Otherwise, if the sides go for a two-year extension, for example, it could give Lohrei the point total to go for a bigger payday on his third contract. The Bruins went with consecutive one-year deals with Torey Krug, an offensive defenseman like Lohrei, once his ELC expired. Advertisement Geekie has a career-high 29 goals. The 26-year-old has picked the right time to unlock his offense. The cap is rising. He will have arbitration rights. Part of Geekie's production is tied to his career-best 20.7 percent shooting percentage. He is likely to regress. But Geekie has the confidence of riding with David Pastrnak and being a backup shooter on the No. 1 line. Negotiations could be lengthy given the degree of Geekie's inbound payday. But based on the market, the right-shot forward could double his current $2 million AAV. Fabian Lysell and Fraser Minten are currently on the varsity. Whether they stick for 2025-26 is unknown. Lysell is scoreless in eight games. He has NHL wheels and a good shot. But the 22-year-old is still learning how to be strong on pucks, dependable on the walls and reliable in defensive coverage. At this point, his shortcomings outweigh his skill. Minten, 20, plays more of a professional game away from the puck. His next step is to transition his good defensive habits into offense. Minten will be a second-year pro in 2025-26. More time in the AHL will not hurt. As for current AHLers, Georgii Merkulov and Matt Poitras would be next in line. But Merkulov, 24, has no goals and one assist in 10 NHL appearances. It's possible the left-shot forward's AHL production does not translate to the NHL. The 21-year-old Poitras had one goal and 10 assists in 33 NHL games this year. In retrospect, he was rushed, both this year and in 2023-24. The organization has to be 100 percent certain Poitras is ready for the NHL before bringing him up. At this point, that is not guaranteed. If the Bruins re-sign their restricted free agents and leave their prospects in Providence, that gives them with four slots to fill. Three are significant: second-line wings for Casey Mittelstadt and a right-shot partner for Hampus Lindholm on the No. 2 pair. Advertisement Given the weakness of their futures, it's unlikely the Bruins flip any of the picks they acquired before the deadline for present-day reinforcements. The 2025 second-rounders that Frederic and Coyle helped to bring back could develop into NHLers in several seasons. The team's amateur scouting staff needs every pick possible to refill the prospects pool. That leaves free agency as the route to fill out the roster. It did not go well last summer when the Bruins invested in Elias Lindholm and Nikita Zadorov. As desperate as they'll be for NHL help, it won't be worth tying up big dollars in players who fall short of their expected thresholds. The Bruins have all of their 2026 picks, save for the fifth-rounder they sent to the Colorado Avalanche in the Coyle transaction. They project to have cap space. So while they're not in a position to trade picks, it could be worth it to pluck a specific RFA away from a cap-strapped team. Next year, for example, Igor Shesterkin will begin earning $11.5 million annually from the New York Rangers. Would that leave GM Chris Drury with enough to match an offer sheet for Will Cuylle? (Top photo of Morgan Geekie, David Pastrnak and Mason Lohrei: Maddie Meyer / Getty Images)
Yahoo
05-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
NHL Fantasy Hockey Waiver Wire Defensemen Pickups March 4 - Devils' Hughes, Lightning's Raddysh Step Up
On every game day this season, THN Fantasy will highlight players and goalies for fantasy managers to stream or roster for the rest of the season. The recommended players and goalies are rostered in less than 50 percent of Yahoo leagues and can be selected in standard fantasy leagues or for daily fantasy games. Jackson LaCombe, ANA at EDM (43% rostered) If LaCombe extends his points streak to five games, he has to be rostered in over 50 percent of Yahoo leagues. He's completely taken over as their top option. The Oilers are expected to start Calvin Pickard, who's been tough to beat than Stuart Skinner lately, but the Ducks offense has also had little trouble scoring. Note puck wizard Trevor Zegras is also eligible to return after serving a three-game suspension, which should give the Ducks offense a further boost. Luke Hughes, NJ at DAL (39% rostered) It doesn't show on the stats sheet but Hughes has been excellent lately. He's scored four assists in his past four games, and though he didn't register a point against Vegas in a 2-0 loss, he skated 27:56 to lead all Devils defensemen, and Dougie Hamilton was the only other defenseman to skate more than 20 minutes. Hughes' fantasy ceiling isn't high because he splits PP minutes with Hamilton, but his play has been trending up. Hughes provides a modest amount of blocks and hits at a bare minimum. Mason Lohrei, BOS vs. NSH (24% rostered) The increased shot volume makes Lohrei a good option. He's up to 20 shots in his past five games, which accounts for nearly one-third of his season total. With Charlie McAvoy still on the shelf, Lohrei's done a good job of generating shots from the blue line. Darren Raddysh, TB vs. CBJ (6% rostered) Really interesting that Raddysh skated 6:54 on the power play to Victor Hedman's 3:51. Raddysh has been in this spot before, and he's performed well as their PP QB. He notched an even-strength assist Monday against the Panthers and now faces a team that's been porous on defense, allowing the eighth-most goals per game and ranks 25th on the penalty kill. Lian Bichsel, DAL vs. NJ (5% rostered) Bichsel is expected to be available after missing three games due to an injury. If you're looking for a defenseman to replace Jeremy Lauzon, last season's hits leader, or just looking for hits, Bichsel is your best option. He's the only defenseman averaging over four hits per game right now. Remember to bookmark The Hockey News Fantasy site for stats, news, analysis, rankings, projections and more, including the Sleepers and Keepers fantasy hockey podcast!
Yahoo
22-02-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Important Bruins Defender Questionable Against Ducks
The Boston Bruins will face off against the Anaheim Ducks on Feb. 22. This is their first game back since the 4 Nations Face-Off break. It was already known that defensemen Charlie McAvoy and Hampus Lindholm would be out for this contest due to their injuries. Unfortunately, it is now possible that the Bruins will be without another one of their key blueliners against the Ducks, too. According to the Boston Herald's Steve Conroy, Mason Lohrei is considered questionable for the Bruins' contest against the Ducks due to an illness. If Lohrei ends up being officially ruled out against the Ducks, it would undoubtedly sting for a Bruins club that desperately needs points right now. In 52 games this season, Lohrei has three goals and has set new career highs with 20 assists and 23 points. Recent Bruins News The Hockey News - Should The Bruins Trade Brad Marchand? The 4 Nations Face-Off is officially over, which means the Boston Bruins are entering their most crucial part of the season. The Bruins have only seven more games left before the March 7 trade deadline, and how they perform over this stretch will help determine if they decide to be sellers. Canada's Sidney Crosby & Patrice Bergeron Share Great Moment Bruins' Charlie McAvoy Shares New Injury Update Bruins Have Massive Challenge In Front Of Them Canada's Brad Marchand Gives Team USA Huge Compliment Stay updated with the most interesting Bruins stories, analysis, breaking news and more! Tap the star to add us to your favorites on Google News to never miss a story.
Boston Globe
29-01-2025
- Sport
- Boston Globe
Sabres get hat tricks from Tage Thompson, JJ Peterka in win over Bruins
After five wins in their previous seven games (5-1-1), the Bruins took a short-lived 1-0 lead on Mason Lohrei's goal in the first period. The Sabres then rattled off the next four goals to ice it. Advertisement Jeremy Swayman, making his 12th start in the last 15 games, fell to 16-17-4, surrendering six goals. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Bruins captain Brad Marchand scored a rare power-play goal with 10:13 gone in the third, briefly cutting the deficit to 4-2. But only 30 seconds later, a streaking Peterka raced over the blue line, split two Bruins defensemen, and snapped his second goal of the night by Swayman. Zach Benson added a power-play goal with 12.1 seconds left, rounding out the beatdown. The Sabres, mired at the bottom of the Eastern Conference and meandering toward yet another postseason DNQ, popped in a pair of second-period goals that had them in charge of a 3-1 game at the second intermission. Thompson, who delivered the 1-1 equalizer late in the first period, provided the go-ahead strike at 4:43 of the middle period, finishing off a devilish tic-tac-toe play around the Bruins' soft coverage in their own end. Thompson, parked just off the left post, without a Bruins defender within a stick's reach, swept home the 2-1 lead. Slightly less than two minutes later, Peterka scored off the rush, making it three rush goals for the night for the Sabres, the Bruins making the entries all too easy. The German-born Peterka, mimicking the shot by Lohrei that provided the Bruins with a 1-0 lead in the first, snapped the puck by Swayman from the left faceoff dot. Advertisement The Bruins, already depleted on the back end with the injuries to Hampus Lindholm and Charlie McAvoy, were down yet another key blue-line contributor with the absence of Brandon Carlo. Now their senior backliner in residence, Carlo made the trip, but remained at the hotel all day, sidelined by what interim coach Joe Sacco said was an illness. Only 12:44 into the first, it was Lohrei, one of the Bruins' younger defensemen, who scored the opening goal. The fleet of foot Lohrei deked around Benson near the top of the left circle and snapped in a shot from the faceoff dot, eluding goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen to the glove side. The Bruins entered the night without a goal from their backline crew in 22 of the last 24 games. With one shot, one of only five the Bruins mustered in the first, Lohrei changed the narrative. It was the first time this season that Lohrei struck for the game's opening goal. The lead didn't hold up for long, with Thompson, striking only 55 seconds later. The Bruins, sloppy on a line change as Thompson raced off the Buffalo bench, were negligent in closing off the prime scoring area in their own end. Thompson raced in and smacked a one-time laser by Swayman for the equalizer. It was Thompson's 99th goal over the last three seasons, pulling him into a tie with the Rangers' Artemi Panarin for 12th among NHL forwards. Colorado's Cale Makar leads defensemen with 56 goals over the same stretch. Thompson followed in the second with his 100th. The Sabres outshot the Bruins, 10-5, in the opening 20:00, continuing a disturbing pattern of late for the Black and Gold. They were outshot in nine of their previous 10 games, on the short end of a 329-218 margin. Advertisement The Bruins entered the night 0 for 5 on the power play in their last three games. On Saturday, in their 3-1 win over the Avalanche, they were not awarded a power play for only the second time this season. Finally, midway through the second, they were awarded a chance on the power play when Mattias Samuelsson hooked Pavel Zacha. But yet again, the Bruins didn't produce a serious threat on net across the two minutes.
