Bruins prospect deemed ‘ineligible’ for second half of season

Author Ty Anderson

December 27th, 2023 5:00 AM

It’s been a tough month for Bruins prospects.

First, the ‘load management’ of Matt Poitras intensified to multiple healthy scratches before the Bruins decided to loan him out to Team Canada for the 2024 World Juniors. Then 2021 first-round pick Fabian Lysell found himself called out — and in pretty strong fashion, all things considered — by P-Bruins head coach Ryan Mougenel.

And now comes the news that Cole Spicer has been deemed ‘academically ineligible’ for the remainder of the collegiate season for University of Minnesota-Duluth.

A fourth-round pick (No. 117 overall) of the Bruins in 2022, Spicer’s sophomore season with the Bulldogs comes to a close after a 17-game run that featured five goals and nine points. The 19-year-old’s five goals ranked second among all UMD skaters, while his nine points were tied for the fifth-most on the team.

It’s an especially brutal development for Spicer’s development, too, as the center was showing serious signs of breaking through after spending the majority of his 2022-23 season at UMD in a fourth-line role, and with just three goals and six points in 32 games over that freshman season.

Spicer was Boston’s second pick of that 2022 class, which is obviously headlined by Poitras in the second round, and with Dans Locmelis (No. 119 overall), Frederic Brunet (No. 132 overall), Reid Dyck (No. 183 overall), and Jackson Edward (No. 200 overall) selected by the Bruins after their selection of the North Dakota-born Spicer.

Prior to this update from the UMD program, the 5-foot-10, 176-pounder Spicer had been Boston’s fourth-most productive prospect playing in the NCAA this season. The top spot on that front is occupied by 2021 fifth-round pick Oskar Jellvik and his nine goals and 17 points in 17 games for BC, with 2019 third-round pick Quinn Olson’s 14 points in 17 games for UMD behind Jellvik, and 2021 seventh-round pick Andre Gasseau’s 12 points in 17 games with the Eagles this season sandwiched between Olson and Spicer in the No. 3 spot.

Providence coach stresses need for the Bruins' top prospect to 'buy in'

• “Um, listen, there’s a lot of good things he does. He can create anxiety with his feet. But for Fabian, he has to recognize that sometimes there’s not always a play to be made,” Mougenel, who was almost visibly biting his tongue before answering, said (video courtesy of Black N’ Gold Productions). “I think that’s still in his growth. He’s learning that. I’m not saying that he won’t, but the team game is real important and he’s got other five other guys, right? I hate the play in the third period where he’s trying to beat a guy one-on-four.

  “That’s the stuff he’s gotta get out of his game and it’s recognizing that. We’re getting into Year 2 here. He’s gotta start buying in or he won’t play for [Bruins head coach] Jim Montgomery.”

  Fabian Lysell, No. 22 in black, goes end-to-end with the puck on a delayed penalty before attemping the 1-on-4 deke towards goal. This is the play in which Ryan Mougenel told the postgame media he “hated” and needs to be taken out of Lysell’s game. See for yourselves: #NHLBruins pic.twitter.com/phN1fnfbaL

  — Bruins Network (@BruinsNetwork) December 19, 2023

  Tongues are always hot after a loss, but there’s some considerable heat there. Especially with Mougenel noting that it’s now the second year for Lysell and that he needs to ‘start buying in’ to what they’re selling.

  As for the inclusion of Montgomery, Mougenel went on to note that Montgomery has little time for players when it comes to individual games within his system.

  “That’s a big part of Monty’s game, is the team game and building the team game,” Mougenel noted. “A lot of that is possession. You can’t necessarily chip the puck, get it back, expand and hit the weak-side D. You need five other guys to be a part of that and you have to be connected. And [have] a willingness to play that way. And until you do, then you’re outta here, you’re not in the AHL, then you’re Jim Montgomery’s problem. But until then, he’s gotta start building that into his game.”

• 

  Sep 24, 2023; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Bruins right wing Fabian Lysell (23) blocks a pass during the third period against the New York Rangers at TD Garden. (Eric Canha/USA TODAY Sports)

• The comment was spicy enough to get back to Boston, with Bruins general manager Don Sweeney asked about it during Monday’s press conference following practice at Warrior Ice Arena.

  “Yeah, that was after yesterday’s game [and] I was actually at yesterday’s game, so I certainly heard [Mougenel]’s frustration after the game as we sat down for about 20 minutes,” Sweeney revealed. “The team played very well in the first period, their pace was up, execution was good. [Lysell] was a big part of that, he scored a nice goal on the power-play with a downhill shot, managed the puck really well.

  “And as the team started to stray away from [their game] — you give credit to Syracuse, because they got to their game, and our team departed from that — that’s where a young player like Fabian that’s he’s specifically referencing. Managing the game and having an understanding, no different than really anybody else, but [Brad Marchand] and [David Pastrnak] go through the same things: offensively inclined players are going to go through that, they want to do more.”

  First of all, the fact that Mougenel had a ’20 minute’ vent session of sorts with Sweeney, and with Lysell highlighted as part of that, tells you this isn’t some sort of new concern for the P-Bruins head coach.

  It’s also interesting that Sweeney is seemingly trying to play good cop here to a certain degree with Lysell, noting that this is often the mindset of offense-first players.

  “Sometimes it’s just about maintaining within the team structure and executing, and that’s something that Fabian and all young players are going to continue to go through [and even] older players, for that matter, are going to go through,” Sweeney said. “They want to do more, and that’s a good quality to have, but you’ve got to do it within the framework of the team. It’s not something that he hasn’t heard directly from [Mougenel] and he’s just trying to reaffirm that part.”

• Of course, with Lysell, the ‘history’ he had that allowed him to fall to the Bruins in the first place can make people wonder if this is a greater problem than Sweeney wants it to be.

  Already one of the more polarizing players in the pipeline (and that was before Mougenel’s comments over the weekend), the view on Lysell and his fit with the Bruins often depends on who you ask.

  Some people I’ve talked with are extremely high on Lysell’s ceiling and what he can bring to the Bruins when fully ready to take flight in the pro game. Others have made it clear that they think the Bruins should try to include him a blockbuster trade while they can (read as: they don’t think he’s gonna make it here).

• 

  NEW YORK, NEW YORK – SEPTEMBER 28: Fabian Lysell #68 of the Boston Bruins attempts to control the puck during the first period against the New York Rangers in a preseason game at Madison Square Garden on September 28, 2021 in New York City. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

  And Lysell also didn’t have himself a great training camp, all things considered.

  In action for two games, Lysell finished his preseason run with zero points, five shots, and was assessed two penalties in just under 33 minutes of total time on ice. Considering he entered camp with the hopes of challenging for an NHL roster spot (and with the Bruins clearly having the openings for a young player or two to push for a spot on their roster), Lysell’s lack of a push was an obvious disappointment. It was even enough for

  They will hope their defense, goaltending, and power play will get off to a good start and build playoff points. Scoring will be a problem unless PP COOKS. Then make a deal at deadline as they gain cap space. The problem is they have no prospect juice. Fabian Lysell looks like a… https://t.co/HWqrDbf5uG

  — BucciOT.Com (@Buccigross) October 3, 2023">ESPN’s John Buccigross to tweet that Lysell was beginning to show signs of being a “bust.”

  That’s a sentiment that’s not shared by some who have seen Lysell up close.

  “Fabian needs to mature and learn how to play more of a ‘pro game’ but he’s still so young,” one Bruin told me at the end of training camp. “People don’t realize how hard it is to adjust to not just the game, but life, in the pros. The truth is that if we sucked, there’s probably a good chance that Fabian is here [in the NHL]. For Fabian, it’s about growing, developing, and having the patience needed to be a good pro.”

  The Bruins themselves will need to have patience with Fabian, too, as he possesses a level of speed, skill, and talent that they simply need to translate to the NHL level if they’re to remain a bonafide threat.

  But that growth, however, will clearly need to be shown beyond the stat line, even with an AHL start featuring 21 goals and 54 points in 77 games as a kid in a man’s league, for the B’s brass to give Lysell that chance to play for Jim Montgomery.

• (Click here to subscribe to the Sports Hub Underground podcast.)

  The Boston Bruins have righted the ship after their first real slump of the season, and they sit in first place in the Atlantic Division. But are they still viewed as the team with the target on its back?

  That’s a big part of the discussion on the newest episode of the Sports Hub Underground podcast, which you can listen to in the above player. Ty Anderson and Matt Dolloff go in-depth on the Bruins’ recent performance, which has come in part without Pavel Zacha and Charlie McAvoy in the lineup. Even though the B’s would be the top seed in the Atlantic Division if the playoffs started today, it doesn’t feel likely that they’d be viewed as a Stanley Cup favorite, for various reasons.

  That, plus: The Patriots may move on from Bill Belichick after the season, but would it actually be the right move? And former Bruins great Tuukka Rask was back on the ice recently, much to the chagrin of some.

  Full rundown:

  (10:23) The guys give their thoughts on the Patriots possibly moving on from Bill Belichick after the season.

  (25:53) Catching up on the Bruins’ recent games and the overall outlook for the next few months heading into the playoffs.

  (53:31) Tuukka Rask is back! Well, sort of…

  (59:12) The guys pick their “Big 3” movies they wish had a proper sequel.

  Subscribe to the Sports Hub Underground wherever you get your podcasts.

  Apple: https://apple.co/3AICTPR

  Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3j5ibDR

  Google: http://bit.ly/38pPKIG

  More options: https://bit.ly/3tSKABs

Get The 98.5 The Sports Hub Newsletter Delivered To Your Inbox

Stay up to date with the latest Boston sports news and analysis, local events, exclusive contests, and more.

Email *

Subscribe

By clicking "Subscribe" I agree to the website's terms of Service and Privacy Policy. I understand I can unsubscribe at any time.

Author Ty Anderson

Category:

• Bruins
• Ty Anderson

Tags:

boston bruins,Cole Spicer