Bruins Mock Draft Roundup: Experts Mixed On First-Round Pick

The 2024 NHL Draft kicks off Friday, and the Bruins have a chance to use a first-round pick for the first time since 2021.

Fabian Lysell was Boston’s last first-round pick, and the lack of premium selections primarily was due to a franchise in win-now mode. There’s also the added effect that the B’s typically pick later in the draft, and those players often aren’t high-impact contributors right away — John Beecher was picked in the first round in the 2019 draft and became a contributor last season.

The Black and Gold received the No. 25 pick in the 2024 NHL Draft from the Senators after trading Linus Ullmark to Ottawa. General manager Don Sweeney on Thursday told reporters the team will let the chips fall to them, and there’s no telling who falls to them.

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Boston University’s Macklin Celebrini is expected to go No. 1 to the San Jose Sharks, and Artyom Levshunov and Anton Silayev are expected to round out the top three. After that, it’s a crap shoot on what teams will do at the Sphere in Las Vegas.

Here’s what mock drafts have the Bruins doing with the 25th pick as well as each analyst’s takes on the players.

Rachel Doerrie, ESPN: Forward Cole Beaudoin, Barrie (OHL)
Beaudoin is someone the Bruins have been watching closely, and his performance at the U18 championships only increased the Bruins’ interest. Beaudoin fits the Bruins’ identity of a physically mature center with good hockey sense, ability to win puck battles and most importantly, “has the dog in him.” The Bruins need to bolster their prospect pool, and Beaudoin gives them a reliable option in the middle six going forward. If Beaudoin is gone, and he might be, I could see the Bruins liking Sacha Boisvert and Emil Hemming in this spot.

Mike G. Morreale, NHL.com: Forward Cole Beaudoin, Barrie (OHL)
The left-handed shot (6-2, 210), a well-conditioned athlete with fantastic compete and hockey sense, and often is compared to (Columbus) Blue Jackets forward Boone Jenner. The Bruins need depth at forward, and Beaudoin can offer just that. He’s a responsible 200-foot player who had 62 points (28 goals, 34 assists) in 67 regular-season games, five points (two goals, three assists) in six OHL playoff games, and four points (two goals, two assists) in seven games for gold medal-winning Canada at the U-18 Worlds.

Adam Kimelman, NHL.com: Forward Egor Surin, Yaroslavl Jr. (Russia-Junior)
Center was an issue for the Bruins this season, and it also goes to the prospect level. That could make Surin (6-1, 197) an appealing option. The 17-year-old is well-regarded for his skating, work ethic and compete level, and was third in scoring in Russia’s junior league during the playoffs with 23 points (five goals, 18 assists) in 19 games.

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Corey Pronman, The Athletic: Defenseman Dominik Badinka (Malmo)
Badinka is well-liked in the league due to his size and mobility and being able to move the puck. He played well toward the end of the year in the SHL and a lot of decision-makers were going in to watch him. He could be a late first to a team like Boston.

Jason Bukala, Sportsnet: Defenseman Cole Huston (UNSTDP)
Hutson is a dynamic offensive defenceman who’s elusive making plays on the offensive blue line and a potential future power play quarterback at the NHL level. Hutson makes up for his lack of size with anticipation and jump to kill plays in the defensive zone. What he provides offensively cannot be coached up. It’s a natural skill set. Hutson will be attending nearby Boston University this fall so the Bruins will keep close tabs on his progress.

Tony Ferrari, The Hockey News, Forward Dean Letourneau St. Andrews (Canada-high school)
Letourneau is one of the biggest mysteries in the draft class as a massive center who has shown some solid puck skill and offensive scoring punch. The issue is the 6-foot-7 pivot has been playing Canadian high school hockey at St. Andrews, which isn’t really a hot pipeline to the NHL. Some think he could be the next Tage Thompson, and others worry about his translatability. The Bruins are hoping for the former.

It’s a mixed bag on what Boston will do with the No. 25 pick. Beaudoin came up the most in mock drafts, but multiple experts also think defense could be a priority for the Bruins.

Fans will find out what the Bruins will do Friday at 7 p.m. ET.