The Bruins face uncertainty to start the 2022-23 NHL season due to a number of injuries, but Boston's first-round draft selection may find an opportunity on the roster.
2021 NHL Entry Draft selection Fabian Lysell earned the bronze medal playing for Sweden at the World Junior Championship, and general manager Don Sweeney has hinted at the possibility of the 19-year-old playing in Boston or Providence. Head coach Jim Montgomery was open to the idea of Lysell playing for Boston to fill in for Brad Marchand, who will miss the start of the season after undergoing double hip surgery.
Bleacher Report's Joe Yerdon is a proponent of the idea, as he wrote a column identifying one rookie on every NHL team to watch for. Lysell was chosen for the Bruins.
"Boston will be without a handful of players to start the season, Brad Marchand being among them," Yerdon wrote Friday. "Fancy enough, Lysell plays the wing like Marchand, and if you’re going to have a player like Lysell get NHL games under his belt, playing him up in the lineup would help. It'll be on Lysell to force the issue in training camp, but after his World Junior Championship performance for Sweden, it'll be tough to send him back to juniors."
Lysell had a successful season in the Western Hockey League, highlighted by a strong playoff run with the Vancouver Giants. The 19-year-old will likely compete with free-agent acquisition Pavel Zacha for a spot on the top line.
