The Bruins are no strangers to the NCAA free agent market.
In fact, it’s been one of Bruins general manager Don Sweeney‘s favorite hangouts of late. From Marc McLaughlin to Brandon Bussi, the Bruins have become a fixture in the late-season market, and have never turned down the opportunity to add some young talent for money and money alone. It’s a damn-near ‘must’ when you’re a team short on draft picks, really, and Sweeney knows it.
Sweeney and the Bruins have already dipped into the market on two separate occasions this year, too, with Notre Dame defenseman Drew Bavaro and goaltender Ryan Bischel added to the organization’s pipeline.
Apr 8, 2023; Tampa, Florida, USA; Quinnipiac forward Collin Graf (11) controls the puck from Minnesota forward Rhett Pitlick (77) during the national championship game of the 2023 Frozen Four at Amalie Arena. (Nathan Ray Seebeck/USA TODAY Sports)
Beginning with the big fish of the college free agent market, the Bruins remain interested in Quinnipiac’s Collin Graf, according to multiple reports and confirmed by 98.5 The Sports Hub.
A 6-foot-1 forward, Graf is coming off a 2023-24 campaign that featured 22 goals and 49 points in 37 games for QU. Graf’s 22 markers were tied for the 10th-most among all D1 players, while his 49 points also ranked 10th.
Graf, a native of Lincoln, Mass., put up 21 goals and 59 points in 41 games for the Bobcats during the 2022-23 season, and was a major player on their road to a national championship, with two assists in the semifinal win over Michigan and a goal in the Frozen Four championship game against Minnesota.
TAMPA, FLORIDA – APRIL 08: Jaxon Nelson #24 of the Minnesota Golden Gophers faces off during the championship game of the 2023 Frozen Four against the Quinnipiac Bobcats at Amalie Arena on April 08, 2023 in Tampa, Florida. (Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)
There’s also been word — or better yet, ‘rumblings’ — regarding the Bruins and Minnesota’s Jaxon Nelson, as first reported by the New England Hockey Journal’s Mark Divver.
Hearing rumblings regarding Bruins and Minnesota captain Jaxon Nelson
— Mark Divver (@MarkDivver) April 1, 2024
6-foot-4, 220-pound free agent center had 19 goals for Gophers this year, including one on Sat. night vs. BU
Finished with 11 goals in last 8 gamesA big-bodied center, standing at 6-foot-4, Nelson put up a college career-best 19 goals and 31 points in 39 games for Minnesota as a fifth-year player in 2023-24.
The 24-year-old Nelson attended development camp with the Capitals in 2022, and reportedly turned down NHL offers in 2023 and decided to instead make one final run with the Golden Gophers after the team came up short against Quinnipiac in the 2023 NCAA national championship game down in Tampa.
That quest came to an end this past weekend with Minnesota’s loss to Boston University.
Apr 6, 2023; Tampa, Florida, USA; Minnesota forward Jaxon Nelson (24) congratulates goaltender Justen Close (1) after beating Boston University in the semifinals of the 2023 Frozen Four at Amalie Arena. (Nathan Ray Seebeck/USA TODAY Sports)
Now, what’s interesting when it comes to their interest in both Graf and Nelson is that the Bruins have just one contract spot left on their books. Now, in theory, the Bruins could add both players depending on what kind of contract is signed.
In the case of Graf, the expectation is that because his market is so hot, he will be signed to a standard contract, which would immediately count as one of the team’s 50 contracts. It would also make Graf eligible to immediately step into the mix and help out an NHL team (like how McLaughlin jumped in for the Bruins in 2022).
Nelson, meanwhile, may be closer to what the Bruins did with Bavaro in the sense that the Bruins could sign him to an amateur tryout agreement in the now and with a contract that kicks into the mix beginning in 2024-25. That would allow Nelson to play in games for AHL Providence, but make him ineligible for an NHL recall until next season.
TAMPA, FLORIDA – APRIL 06: Jacob Quillan #16 of the Quinnipiac Bobcats celebrates a goal in the first period during a semifinal of the 2023 Frozen Four against the Michigan Wolverines at Amalie Arena on April 06, 2023 in Tampa, Florida. (Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)
One name that officially fell off the board for the Bruins on Monday night, however, was Quinnipiac’s Jacob Quillan, as Quillan came to terms on a contract with the Maple Leafs.
There is word Toronto is signing Dartmouth, NS native Jacob Quillan out of Quinnipiac. Won a national championship last year, lots of competition for his services this year.
— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) April 2, 2024Quillan took part in last year’s Bruins development camp (though his injury kept him off the ice), and it was believed that the Bruins were one of the finalists for his services prior to his signing with Toronto.
The 22-year-old Quillan posted 17 goals and 46 points in 39 games for the Bobcats this past season, and departed QU with 38 goals and 93 points in 116 career NCAA games.
