But many players have proved critics wrong and made it to the bigs. Guys like Theo Fleury, Marin St. Louis and Brian Giontawere pioneers for current players like Johnny Gaudreau, Cole Caufield, Alex DeBrincat and even Brad Marchand. For defensemen, it's even rarer to be undersized. Few have made it to the NHL, and only a couple come to mind, like Jared Spurgeon of the Minnesota Wild and former Boston Bruin and current St. Louis Blues, Torey Krug.
Krug is the player that Bruins prospect Jack Ahcan has been compared to, a defenseman who has risen up the ranks in the past couple of seasons. Standing at 5'9" and weighing 180 lbs, the Savage, Minnesota native went undrafted after being named the USHL defensemen of the year for the 2015-16 season with the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders. Ahcan would go on to play four years NCAA and eventually be named captain of St. Cloud State Huskies before signing a professional contract on March 26th, 2020, with the Boston Bruins.
Ahcan made his NHL debut on March 18th, 2021, against the Buffalo Sabres and scored his first NHL goal on March 10th, 2022, against the Chicago Blackhawks. He spent the majority of the 2021-22 season with Providence Bruins, where he collected 6 goals and 17 assists in 46 games played (nine games with Boston this season).
Today is Jack Ahcan's 25th birthday, and in honour of that, the Boston Bruins released a video of his unique journey to the NHL. Enjoy:
