2026 NHL Draft Diary: Tynan Lawrence

Tynan Lawrence of Boston University in Hockey East will file a draft diary for NHL.com this season leading up to the 2026 NHL Draft. The 17-year-old center (6-foot, 185 pounds), who was born in Fredericton, New Brunswick, is No. 7 on NHL Central Scouting's midterm ranking of North American skaters eligible for the 2026 draft. He had 17 points (10 goals, seven assists) in 13 games with Muskegon of the United States Hockey League to begin the season and has four points (one goal, three assists) in 15 games since joining Boston University on Jan. 8.

Hi hockey fans.

We had two big wins in a home-and-home series against rival Boston College last weekend. I think it was very important to gain the sweep (3-1 on Friday; 5-1 on Saturday) for the confidence of the team. We've been struggling a little bit but getting those wins under our belt helped us regain some of that confidence. It was great how we kind of came together and are continuing to build chemistry toward the most important part of the season. 

Our final regular-season game will be at the University of Massachusetts Lowell on Saturday (6 p.m. ET; ESPN+). It's obviously huge because it's crunch time at the end of the year. These games count a little bit more and you have to show up. I feel like we're all excited and ready for whatever comes our way.

Personally, I think I'm just getting more comfortable with the guys on my team, my linemates. We're building chemistry and you kind of see it progress every game. I feel it showed in the weekend series against Boston College. I feel like I've just got to keep building chemistry and have fun with it.

I thought I might give you an idea what a Monday or Tuesday might look like for me after a hockey weekend. On a typical day, I wake up in the morning and get a good meal in. Normally, I'm at the gym with the team at 9:45 a.m. unless you have a morning class. We'll have a team meeting and then step on the ice for practice. Most of the guys will then eat together. We usually have two classes in the afternoon around campus. Then we normally have the night off and you just kind of hang out with your buddies.

Outside of hockey and schoolwork, I like to just hang out with the guys. I feel like our freshman class is a great group, so I just try to spend time with them and want to continue to build bonds. I feel like it'll kind of translate to the ice, so I just try to spend some time with them and have fun with it.

Before I wrap up, I just wanted to offer a few words about the Winter Olympics. I wish Canada would have won the gold medal game in men's ice hockey but that was really fast-paced hockey. It was probably some of the best hockey you'll ever watch. Watching Canada and how they came together in such a short tournament, and even Team USA, in a single game elimination, you saw how each country brought their very best. It's fun to watch those players have success at that high level.

I guess the one Boston University alum who was impressive to me at the Olympics was, obviously, Macklin Celebrini. He's so young and not just competing but dominating at that level as a 19- and 20-year-old. It was real impressive to see how he caught up so quickly and is now dominating in the NHL and at the Olympic stage. It was a special thing to watch and it's something that you can learn from.

That's it for this month. Thank you for reading!