C Dean Letourneau - Boston College, NCAA (2024, 25th, BOS)

[The Devilish Buffoon]

This has almost nothing to do with Letourneau but I can totally see Ottawa using the pick on Letourneau if they didn't trade it to Boston. A giant, raw, right-shooting Ontario boy, drafted out of AAA/H.S. and slated for the NCAA. Almost like the prototype for our amateur scouts.

 

[HockeyVirus]

Thank goodness the Bruins keep picking guy ranked in the 3rd round with 1st round picks

- Signed the Atlantic division

 

[Drift]

Finished the season with 3 points and no goals playing 36 games.

Certainly less than ideal. Will be curious to see what happens in BC next year with the exodus of talent happening on offense. Leonard, Perrault, Hagens?, Gasseau?, who else might leave and turn pro.

 

[WarriorofTime]

Thank goodness the Bruins keep picking guy ranked in the 3rd round with 1st round picks

- Signed the Atlantic division

He probably goes in the next few picks if he doesn't go in that exact spot. Weird smugness. He's a longterm boom or bust project. I'm sure they could have used the pick on a guy who is a safer bet to play 300 NHL games, but so what, you don't set yourself in a next generation with a bunch of John Beecher types.

 

[Pavel Buchnevich]

Certainly less than ideal. Will be curious to see what happens in BC next year with the exodus of talent happening on offense. Leonard, Perrault, Hagens?, Gasseau?, who else might leave and turn pro.

Leonard and Perreault are likely gone.

Gasseau probably could go either way. Bruins will want to sign him. But he has a fourth year he can play.

Hagens likewise might not be clear yet what he’s going to do. Will probably depend on who drafts him and what their plan is for him.

 

[Hockeyville USA]

Is 36 GP 3 PTS the worst D+1 18 year old NCAA season from a 1st round pick in history?

 

[Jared Grayden]

Is 36 GP 3 PTS the worst D+1 18 year old NCAA season from a 1st round pick in history?

Impossible. He's still 6'7" so he'll be fine.

 

[Bonin21]

Is 36 GP 3 PTS the worst D+1 18 year old NCAA season from a 1st round pick in history?

It honestly may be for forwards. Will think back a bit.

Doesn't mean he's a bust but probably should have gone to the USHL.

 

[wickedwitch]

It honestly may be for forwards. Will think back a bit.

Doesn't mean he's a bust but probably should have gone to the USHL.

Yes he should have.

I want to know how that decision was made. Why a) did BC decide to ask him instead of almost anyone else and b) why did his team think saying yes was a good idea?

 

[Hockeyville USA]

Yes he should have.

I want to know how that decision was made. Why a) did BC decide to ask him instead of almost anyone else and b) why did his team think saying yes was a good idea?

For whatever reason, they thought he was NCAA ready just because he put up a ton of points in Canadian Prep School hockey. It is extremely rare now for someone to go straight from HS/Prep to the NCAA. Almost everyone needs some time in junior to round out their game against better older competition to get ready. All Greg Brown had to do was look at what happened to Jay O'Brien, straight from Thayer Academy to Providence and that was a disaster.

Letourneau should still be a solid NCAA player in a year or two, but he most definitely should have gone to the USHL for a full season.

 

[TLEH]

For whatever reason, they thought he was NCAA ready just because he put up a ton of points in Canadian Prep School hockey. It is extremely rare now for someone to go straight from HS/Prep to the NCAA. Almost everyone needs some time in junior to round out their game against better older competition to get ready. All Greg Brown had to do was look at what happened to Jay O'Brien, straight from Thayer Academy to Providence and that was a disaster.

Letourneau should still be a solid NCAA player in a year or two, but he most definitely should have gone to the USHL for a full season.

Rinzel just did this with solid success so far for a similarly raw player coming out of MN-HS. D+1, USHL. D+2, D+3, NCAA.

 

[Hockeyville USA]

Rinzel just did this with solid success so far for a similarly raw player coming out of MN-HS. D+1, USHL. D+2, D+3, NCAA.

Rinzel went from HS to junior to NCAA. Letourneau should have followed suit from Prep to junior to NCAA.

Rinzel is also a unique case as @Bonin21 has pointed out because he was still only a junior in HS during his DY (thus hadn't graduated HS when drafted) and needed to go to the USHL for the 2022-23 season, couldn't go to Minnesota for his D+1. One of those summer birthdays in the States on the extremely old end for their grade.

 

[Bonin21]

Rinzel just did this with solid success so far for a similarly raw player coming out of MN-HS. D+1, USHL. D+2, D+3, NCAA.

Rinzel went to USHL for his senior year of HS. Otherwise he probably would have gone to the U that year.

For Letourneau, I'm pretty sure BC had a departure so he was the next option up.

 

[TLEH]

Rinzel went to USHL for his senior year of HS. Otherwise he probably would have gone to the U that year.

For Letourneau, I'm pretty sure BC had a departure so he was the next option up.

Honestly was unaware that he was a junior in HS in his draft year but regardless I was just saying he went USHL after HS rather than U. But I guess it does matter because he sort of had to haha.

 

[Scotianhab]

Certainly less than ideal. Will be curious to see what happens in BC next year with the exodus of talent happening on offense. Leonard, Perrault, Hagens?, Gasseau?, who else might leave and turn pro.

The top goalie Fowler is expected to sign with Mtl as well. Unless your talking about just forwards.

 

[WarriorofTime]

I'm really not sure why everyone thinks it's such a big deal. Because it doesn't look pretty on a stat sheet?

A lot of drafted guys don't go right into the NCAA in their D+1. It's more rare for 1st round picks because they're usually further along when they get picked but it's not a big shocker that this prep school kid was very raw, as everyone expected. Had he been 0.75-0.8 PPG in the USHL or whatever he may have been, would that mean anything for his long-term trajectory? It's like people just completely forget who these players are and how they were viewed prior to the draft once a draft occurs and they are defaulted to "standard 1st [or whatever] round pick" with all prior knowledge tossed out the window.

I remember people saying they were shocked when Sam Rinzel wasn't Bobby Orr out there as a 1st round pick in the USHL D+1. Someone on here was like "I was shocked he looked like he belonged" well yeah, he belonged, he was playing high school hockey the prior year and wouldn't be in that league if it wasn't where he belonged. I'm sure if a spot at Minnesota had unexpectedly opened up and he played there, he would have been a buried 7th defenseman on a strong team and looked like the DMan equivalent of how Letourneau did this year. Fast forward and the toolset that got him drafted high progressed along enough to see him be named Big Ten Defenseman of the Year and now he's signed to an ELC and playing end of season burn year NHL games.

He held down a roster spot after a spot unexpectedly opened up, and didn't put up points, but wasn't really expected to. I think playing in a depth role in the NCAA this year probably just makes him better equipped to make a jump next year. The only "downside" if you really think about it is him burning a year of eligibility but they wouldn't want him to spend 4 years in college anyways.

 

[Hockeyville USA]

I'm really not sure why everyone thinks it's such a big deal. Because it doesn't look pretty on a stat sheet?

A lot of drafted guys don't go right into the NCAA in their D+1. It's more rare for 1st round picks because they're usually further along when they get picked but it's not a big shocker that this prep school kid was very raw, as everyone expected. Had he been 0.75-0.8 PPG in the USHL or whatever he may have been, would that mean anything for his long-term trajectory? I remember people saying they were shocked when Sam Rinzel wasn't Bobby Orr out there as a 1st round pick in the USHL D+1. Someone on here was like "I was shocked he looked like he belonged" well yeah, he belonged, he was playing high school hockey the prior year and wouldn't be in that league if it wasn't where he belonged. Fast forward and the toolset that got him drafted high progressed along enough to see him be named Big Ten Defenseman of the Year and now he's signed to an ELC and playing end of season burn year NHL games.

He held down a roster spot after a spot unexpectedly opened up, and didn't put up points, but wasn't really expected to. I think playing in a depth role in the NCAA this year probably just makes him better equipped to make a jump next year. The only "downside" if you really think about it is him burning a year of eligibility but they wouldn't want him to spend 4 years in college anyways.

They drafted him with the hopes of being a Tage Thompson lite, not a Brian Boyle lite. That's why it's a big deal.

In fact, Letourneau trending more in the direction of Riley Tufte, another giant kid drafted late in the 1st (came out of MN HS with only a small sample of junior) who was rushed to the NCAA IMHO. Even Tufte put up some ok numbers at UMD.

We'll see how Letourneau does next year, still pretty early.

 

[WarriorofTime]

They drafted him with the hopes of being a Tage Thompson lite, not a Brian Boyle lite. That's why it's a big deal.

In fact, Letourneau trending more in the direction of Riley Tufte, another giant kid drafted late in the 1st (came out of MN HS with only a small sample of junior) who was rushed to the NCAA IMHO. Even Tufte put up some ok numbers at UMD.

We'll see how Letourneau does next year, still pretty early.

They're probably looking at him for his D+3, D+4 to really see what they may have there. Not necessarily drafting a guy to be the best player in his D+1, or else they'd take someone else. Tage was a NTDP kid, no doubt more ready for college at the time of his draft, and it took until like his D+6 to really put it together at the pro level.

 

[TLEH]

They're probably looking at him for his D+3, D+4 to really see what they may have there. Not necessarily drafting a guy to be the best player in his D+1, or else they'd take someone else. Tage was a NTDP kid, no doubt more ready for college at the time of his draft, and it took until like his D+6 to really put it together at the pro level.

Playing a season at a level you don't belong at can do major damage.

 

[WarriorofTime]

Playing a season at a level you don't belong at can do major damage.

Yeah it could but I don’t have that negative view of his season. Just looked like a guy putting it together and figuring it out at the college level. Not necessarily getting run off the ice. Should be a big part of BC next season

 

[Hockeyville USA]

They're probably looking at him for his D+3, D+4 to really see what they may have there. Not necessarily drafting a guy to be the best player in his D+1, or else they'd take someone else. Tage was a NTDP kid, no doubt more ready for college at the time of his draft, and it took until like his D+6 to really put it together at the pro level.

Tage was a late birthday NTDP kid whose DY was spent on a putrid UConn team in the NCAA where he put up very good 18 year old season numbers. The situations between Letourneau and Thompson aren't comparable, their playing styles are what are comparable.

 

[WarriorofTime]

Tage was a late birthday NTDP kid whose DY was spent on a putrid UConn team in the NCAA where he put up very good 18 year old season numbers. The situations between Letourneau and Thompson aren't comparable, their playing styles are what are comparable.

Right Tage was further along development curve wise.

 

[Drift]

The top goalie Fowler is expected to sign with Mtl as well. Unless your talking about just forwards.

Was just focused on forwards because of Dean, but yup! More of an exodus.

 

[SannywithoutCompy]

Playing a season at a level you don't belong at can do major damage.

Yeah confidence can be broken very easily, you see it with a lot of European players who get tossed onto the 4th lines of their pro teams too early.

Would have liked to see him go the USHL route, but now it's on BC's coaching staff to get him a feel for the college game.

 

[qcal1427]

They're probably looking at him for his D+3, D+4 to really see what they may have there. Not necessarily drafting a guy to be the best player in his D+1, or else they'd take someone else. Tage was a NTDP kid, no doubt more ready for college at the time of his draft, and it took until like his D+6 to really put it together at the pro level.

If you're hoping a guy can put it together in the NCAA in his D+3 or D+4 you absolutely should not be taking him in the first round.

If it took Tage (32 points in 36 games in his D0) until his D+6 to have a real NHL impact what is the thinking with Letorneau? By his D+8 he'll be a solid NHLer???