Bruins Prospect Dazzles In Thrilling UMass Tourney Win
Bruins fans acclimated to late nights from the team’s recent West Coast road trip were treated to a glimpse of the future if they stayed up Thursday to watch NCAA tournament hockey.
After waiting for Western Michigan to finally knock off Minnesota State in the first Fargo regional semifinal, UMass and Minnesota took the ice at Scheels Arena for their own instant classic. The Gophers led 3-1 after two, but the Minutemen stormed back with three third-period goals before Minnesota forced overtime with a tally in the final minutes. Then, just under five minutes into the extra frame, Aydar Suniev scored for UMass to send the Minutemen to Saturday night’s final with a berth to the Frozen Four on the line.
As to the Bruins connection, UMass might not have staged the comeback and won in OT if it weren’t for Dans Locmelis. Boston owns the Latvian center’s rights after taking him in the fourth round of the 2022 NHL Draft.
Since then, Locmelis has carved out a nice collegiate career for himself in Amherst, Mass., especially as a playmaker. He scored just six goals this season but chipped in with 23 assists. He filled that role in a big way Thursday night with two helpers (and was a plus-3), including an absolute beauty on the overtime game-winner.
While Locmelis’ numbers don’t jump off the page, that sort of vision and execution — the backhanded saucer pass through traffic — is something you can dream on. Just look at where he was and the angle from which he made the pass.
(Locmelis in the circle and Suniev in the diamond along with the patch of ice he gets the pass.)
Just this week, Daily Faceoff writer Steven Ellis labeled Locmelis one of his five late-round steals in a look back at the 2022 draft.
“Locmelis is a hard-working forward who uses his speed and work ethic to win battles. He’s not overly creative, but he is a decent puck distributor who is getting better with more confidence. (He) won’t be a point producer in the NHL, but I could see him becoming a useful, bottom-six forward who doesn’t lose a ton of puck battles and can find players in open space.”
The big thing for Locmelis remains his size, which is something UMass coach Greg Carvel — and talent evaluators — have harped on since Locmelis made the leap to Hockey East. It’s clear, though, when you see glimpses like Thursday night, there’s plenty to work with moving forward.
So while he might not be the next David Krejci, despite the Krejci-like play vs. Minnesota, Locmelis could be an important piece for Boston once he signs. The Bruins are in a rebuild, and they have some holes to fill at the top of the roster. There’s value in someone like Locmelis being able to step in sooner rather than later as an affordable depth option to allow the team to find pricier pieces to fall in place on the top lines.