2 Former Bruins Get Fresh Start With Avalanche

If you’ve been following the Boston Bruins over the past few seasons, you’ve likely heard the names Fabian Lysell and Georgii Merkulov. Two promising young forwards who once seemed like locks to make the Bruins roster one day, both players are now members of the Colorado Avalanche organization. Lysell was traded to the Avalanche in June and Merkulov signed with the team on July 20.

In 219 AHL games, the 23-year-old Lysell scored 57 goals and 163 points, including 17 goals and 42 points last season. Merkulov played 271 games in Providence and scored 94 goals and 240 points, including 24 goals and 61 points last season.

The Bruins have struggled to consistently develop young talent in recent years. Whether the issue was the players themselves, the Bruins’ development system, or something in between isn’t clear. What is clear, however, is that Merkulov became the Providence Bruins all-time leading scorer during his time in the AHL and Lysell was a highly touted prospect with immense offensive upside. The two combined for 23 total NHL games during their time with the Bruins.

It’s easy to look at the NHL production and say that both Lysell and Merkulov failed to produce when given a look at the NHL level, but that would also be disingenuous given the circumstances. In 12 games, Lysell scored one goal and three points. In 11 games (split across three seasons), Merkulov recorded one assist and failed to score a goal.

Important context here is that Lysell averaged just 13:27 of ice time during his time in Boston and Merkulov averaged just 12:18. Players shouldn’t be given opportunities; these opportunities should always be earned. With that said, the Bruins never gave either player a consistent opportunity or a long enough leash to determine what they could contribute at the NHL level.

Bruins Player Development Must Improve

Time will tell if Lysell or Merkulov become NHL regulars with a very talented Avalanche team, but the bigger story to consider here is that the Bruins must do a better job at identifying player strengths and playing to them rather than changing them entirely.

Unfortunately, some high-upside prospects have already moved on from the Bruins organization. Change has to start somewhere, though, and the good news is that the Bruins have already started making changes to potentially address these issues. The additions of Kevyn Adams, Dennis Bonvie, Jeremy Rogalski and Alex Gimenez, combined with the departures of Providence’s general manager Evan Gold and head coach Ryan Mougenel, signal a change in how the Bruins intend to approach player development.

Hopefully, moving forward, the Bruins will do a better job of developing young talent who can make an impact at the NHL level. This will be increasingly important as the Bruins aim to return to their spot as perennial contenders. It’s nearly impossible to remain competitive over an extended period of time in a salary cap world without young talent subsidizing roster turnover. Part of this is drafting well, but a bigger component to the puzzle is player development. Merkulov and Lysell may thrive elsewhere, but Boston can no longer afford to let this become a recurring trend.