In the System: P-Bruins Clinch Atlantic Division Title, Top Seed in East

BostonBruins.com – Take a look through what some of the Bruins prospects have been up to over the last week.

Providence

The first place Providence Bruins (51-14-2-0) clinched the Atlantic Division regular season title and the one-seed in the Eastern Conference with some help from the Bridgeport Islanders on Thursday night. The P-Bruins took five out of a possible six points in last week’s trip to upstate New York, after wins over Utica and Syracuse and an overtime loss to Rochester. With five games remaining in the regular season, Providence will play three games in three days starting with a road game in Hartford on Friday, before hosting Rochester Saturday and Springfield on Sunday. 

Captain Patrick Brown scored twice in the 4-2 victory over Syracuse last Friday. The forward gave Providence a 2-1 lead late in the first period by capping off the perfect sequence of puck movement on the power play, before sealing the victory with the empty net goal. The Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, native ranks second on the team with 33 assists and third on the team with 19 goals and a career-best 52 points. He is also tied for the team lead with six power play goals. 

Max Wanner and Navrin Mutter netted their first goals in Providence uniforms during last Friday’s victory in Syracuse. Mutter redirected the puck into the back of the net 2:52 into the opening frame to give the P-Bruins an early lead, while Wanner’s tally stood as the game-winning goal in the second period. 

Georgii Merkulov has recorded three points in his last two games. The forward posted two assists in Friday’s win at Syracuse, before adding a helper on the lone tally in Saturday’s 2-1 overtime loss in Rochester. The Ryazan, Russia, native leads the team with 35 assists and 56 points and ranks second with 21 goals. 

The P-Bruins were backstopped by stellar goaltending performances from Michael DiPietro and Simon Zajicek last week. The duo stopped a combined 66 of 72 shots faced in the three games, allowing opponents just two goals in each game. DiPietro leads the AHL with a 1.95 goals against average, .929 save percentage, and 32 wins in 42 games played this season.

Juniors

Cooper Simpson recorded a goal and an assist for the Youngstown Phantoms in last Friday’s 6-2 victory over the U.S. National Development Team Program. The forward scored the game’s opening goal just 1:35 into the first period, before notching the lone assist on the goal that extended the Phantoms’ lead to 5-2 in the third period. Simpson finished the regular season ranked second in the USHL with 74 points, fourth in goals with 34, and tied for fourth in assists with 40. Simpson and the Phantoms clinched a first-round bye in the 2026 USHL Clark Cup Playoffs. The Shakopee, Minnesota, native was originally selected by Boston in the 3rd round (79th overall) of the 2025 NHL Entry Draft.     

Europe

Vashek Blanar has skated in 30 games with HV71 of the Swedish Junior Hockey League this season. The defenseman totals five goals and 10 assists for 15 points. The Vail, Colorado, native was originally selected by Boston in the fourth round (100th overall) of the 2025 NHL Entry Draft.

NCAA

Will Zellers landed two shots on goal in North Dakota’s season-ending, 2-1 loss to Wisconsin on Thursday at the Frozen Four in Las Vegas. Zellers finished second on the team with 18 goals and fourth on the team with 34 points in 38 games this season. The forward was originally selected by Colorado in the third round (76th overall) of the 2024 NHL Entry Draft and was acquired via trade along with Casey Mittelstadt and a second round pick in the 2025 draft (Liam Pettersson) for Charlie Coyle and a fifth round pick in 2026.