WILMINGTON, Mass. — Boston Bruins development camp ended Friday at Ristuccia Arena with a scrimmage featuring all 36 players who attended the four-day event.
“Today’s scrimmage highlighted a lot of the things we were working on and hoping to see this week,” Bruins general manager Don Sweeney said. “I thought it was a big success”
The scrimmage was split into two 25-minute halves, and a number of players stood out with their skill at both ends of the ice.
Here are some observations and notes from the scrimmage.
— Joonas Kemppainen picked up a hamstring injury in Finland last week and didn’t skate at camp, but he did attend.
— Northeastern defenseman Matt Benning scored the opening goal just 13 seconds into the game.
— Zach Senyshyn, the 15th overall pick in the 2015 NHL Draft, showed his excellent skating ability, explosiveness and offensive instincts with two goals and an assist. The 18-year-old right winger stood out among the forwards.
— Ryan Donato was easily the best player on either team. He skated past several defensemen with a variety of effective 1-on-1 moves that put him into scoring positions, including an excellent curl-and-drag finished with a wrister from inside the right facoff circle that beat goaltender Zane McIntyre bar down. The 2014 second-round pick had a solid camp, and he will start his collegiate career at Harvard in the fall.
— McIntyre, who will compete for the backup goalie job at the NHL level in training camp, made a few really good saves from the low slot, including a stop on Jake DeBrusk all alone from four feet out in the first half.
— Tri-City Americans defenseman Brandon Carlo excelled defensively with his long reach and defensive awareness. The 37th pick in the 2015 draft broke up a pass at the blue line that led to Colby Cave’s goal midway through the first half.
— Andrew Poturalski came to camp on an invite basis and scored two nice goals for the black team. The 21-year-old forward tallied 29 points (14 goals, 15 assists) in 40 games as a University of New Hampshire freshman last season. He has a promising future.
— Yale’s Rob O’Gara, who’s known as a stay-at-home defenseman, joined the rush several times and scored a goal in the second half by skating into the attacking zone during a line change and finishing a breakaway chance. He’s another player who had a consistently strong camp.
— University of Denver forward Danton Heinen scored the final goal of the game for the white team. He arguably was the best forward all week with his quick release, improved strength and smooth skating. Bruins development coach Jay Pandolfo noted Wednesday and Thursday that Heinen stood out with his performance in practice drills.
— The white team, led by Senyshyn, Tanev and Heinen, won 8-4. The two teams competed in a shootout to end the day, and DeBrusk scored a filthy goal.
Thumbnail photo via Twitter/@NHLBruins
