Will Zellers, Cooper Simpson Talk North Dakota Bond, Farms and Bruins Future

BOSTON –– Will Zellers and Cooper Simpson’s stalls are stationed right next to each other this week at Warrior Ice Arena.

The two Boston Bruins prospects did not need the locker-room setup to get to know each other, though. The future University of North Dakota teammates have been training together this summer in Minnesota, where they both are from.

The 20-year-old Zellers, acquired from the Colorado Avalanche in March 2025, and the 19-year-old Simpson, selected in the third round of the 2025 NHL Draft by the Bruins, took the same flight to Boston for Development Camp. Next week, they will be on UND campus.

“I feel like I am already super close to Will. He’s like a brother already. It will be very nice coming into school, knowing he already had a year in front of me and having him teach me some ways and stuff,” Simpson said. “I am kind of following in his footsteps.”

Their paths have been very similar. Zellers played three years at Shattuck St. Mary’s before spending a season in the USHL with the Green Bay Gamblers. The left wing, who was originally a third-round pick of the Avalanche in 2024, then made the transition to the NCAA. Simpson skated for his hometown Shakopee High before going to the USHL; he was with the Youngstown Phantoms during the 2025-26 campaign. The forward is about to enter his freshman season at UND, with Zellers as his sophomore guide.

​“I think a lot of my little habits got better. I think a lot of my defensive side, like stick positioning – it’s all that stuff. And the mental side of it always. Just figuring out what to do and staying strong,” Simpson said. “Obviously college will be a jump, so just getting bigger, faster and stronger. That’s been the main thing for me.”

Simpson luckily has a top-tier mentor. Zellers impressed in his first collegiate showing with 34 points (18 goals, 16 assists) through 38 games. He was third on the team in points (the most was 37) and second in goals. UND made it all the way to the national semifinals at the Frozen Four in Las Vegas, Nevada, where it fell 2-1 to the Wisconsin Badgers.​

“I did [have a good season] from a personal standpoint, but of course, at North Dakota the only goal is to hang one of those national championship banners. To get so close and lose like that, it’s pretty tough,” Zellers said. “But it’s going to motivate us for next year. We’ve got a lot of young guys coming back who have been through that process. It hurt pretty bad, but it also is going to help us in the long run.”

Zellers will remain part of the Fighting Hawks core that battles for the title once again. Dane Jackson, the head coach of UND, has been with the program for 20 years. Zellers was quick to grab his attention.

“Will had an outstanding year. He’s highly competitive and has a lot of belief in his ability, and he just plays with a lot of confidence. I think that’s some of his best attributes, is just kind of his big-game mentality. He wants the puck on his stick; he believes he can make a play,” Jackson said. “He plays with a lot of competitiveness to win pucks and just finds a way to get to the net and score goals. He’s got a real knack and real presence with the puck on his stick, and I think that combination of his athletic ability and poise and mindset is really what allowed him to be such a good player in college this year.”

For Zellers, wearing the UND jersey is about more than the points and the potential trophies. It comes down to deep familial pride. Zellers’ parents, grandparents and great-grandparents all attended the school. While he is from Maple Grove, Minnesota, he always knew he wanted to be a Fighting Hawk.​

“It means so much. It is crazy to say, but I wanted to play at North Dakota before I wanted to play in the NHL. That was my dream. I grew up idolizing all those players. It is so special to have the opportunity now,” Zellers said. “I remember growing up, thinking those guys that put on the green, black and white on, I thought they were the absolute man. I love those guys.”

Zellers took his fandom seriously. His family got a dog following North Dakota’s national championship win in 2016. Zellers immediately named him Boeser (now a Vancouver Canucks forward), who played two seasons at UND. He also looked up to Zach Parise, the fellow Minnesota native, who went to Shattuck St. Mary’s and UND, too.

The University of North Dakota has always been at the heart of his family, and now Zellers is carrying on the legacy. The six-foot, 180-pound forward was a bit different, though, and opted for hockey instead of farm work as a kid. The Zellers have had a farm in Devils Lake, North Dakota for almost 200 years. Zellers’ dad, Kurt, grew up there and tells his son about the 14-hour days in the combine. It sprawls around 8,000 acres and grows corn, wheat and soybeans.

“It’s always nice knowing where your roots come from, especially the traits farmers have. I think they’re the backbone of America, so getting those traits from my grandpa, my dad, everyone in my family, I think really helped me on the ice,” Zellers said. “I never really worked on there too much. I was always playing in summer tournaments. My dad would always give it to me that I had it a little bit easier than him. But of course, I go out there, go visit, drive some of the combines with my grandpa and kind of just explore the farm. We have a couple cats out there.”

Zellers has also built a strong relationship with the staff on the farm, most of whom moved from South Africa and had never been to a hockey game before.​

“I gave them a stick, and they hung it up in their house where they live. They were excited to come out and see that – it was special,” Zellers said. “They came to a Green Bay game when I was playing Fargo. They went to a Shattuck game, too, and they came to a North Dakota game. They’ve hit every stage of hockey I’ve been part of so far, so it’s cool having those guys there. They help my grandpa out so much, and I am grateful for them.”

Zellers has not been able to spend too much time on the farm this summer between Bruins Development Camp and training for his upcoming college season. On a typical day, he gets up to work out from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m., and then he meets Simpson to skate. It is usually an hour and a half of skill work and battle-based drills, he said. Aside from hockey, Zellers and Simpson had the same answer for what they do in the summer: go boating on the lake and play golf. Who has the better game?

“I haven’t golfed with him, but he said his putting is dialed in. But I don’t know. I think I’ll give it to myself, but we’ll see at school,” Simpson said. “I grew up golfing. My dad is a golf pro, so I kind of just got the ways with him.”

When assessing the recruiting report on Simpson, Jackson said he actually saw a lot of similarities with Zellers. As a coach, he’s happy the two are connecting this summer before his squad continues its hunt for a national title.

“Cooper has high-end offensive instincts, really good stick skills, ability to score. Probably just has some habits and details in his game that he has to fill in, like a lot of young guys. I think they improved quite a bit this year. We saw those same things with Will, and Will was able to really work hard at his two-way game to be able to be a responsible, relied-upon player. We have no doubt that Cooper will – as he gets to this level – buy into playing a strong, 200-foot game and will make those special plays offensively,” Jackson said.

“I think it’s really nice for Cooper to have a guy that he’s comfortable with and kind of show him the way and talk about what he’s about to experience in his first year. That’s always the benefit – when players come in, and they’re more comfortable and feel good about the off-ice things, I think that helps them to play their best on the ice.”

​Simpson gained a lot of confidence last season in the USHL. He had 74 points (34 goals, 40 assists) through 61 games, which was good for second-most in the league. After practice on Wednesday at Warrior Ice Arena, B’s defensive prospect Elliott Groenewold (fourth round in 2024) pointed to Simpson as a player who has stood out so far during camp.

“I’m really competitive. I like to win. I do not like to lose,” Simpson said. “I feel like I’m a very offensive player. I make plays, score goals and just want to win.”  

Both Simpson and Zellers are pushing themselves and each other to be consistent difference makers for their team, which, right now, is the University of North Dakota. They’ve got their sights set on sporting the Spoked-B one day, though.

​“Trying to put more weight on, do what I can to strengthen parts of my game that were kind of struggling in college. No matter what level you’re at, you are always going to have something to work on when you get home for the summer. Just honing that skill in and try to get better every day,” Zellers said. “I am kind of proving myself, not [just] to everyone, but also to myself, that I can play in college and still score goals like juniors. For sure helped my confidence a lot. Made me kind of realize the NHL isn’t too far of a reach away. Still have a lot of work to do, but it felt good after this year.”