Bruins rank dead last in The Athletic's prospect ranking system

BOSTON -- The re-signings of Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci seem to have the Bruins in a pretty good position for the immediate future. The picture of the long-term future, though, remains a bit murkier.

And by one measure, it's downright bleak.

The Athletic's Corey Pronman assessed all prospects under the age of 22 for every NHL organization (a group that includes draft picks from 2018 through 2022) and then ranked each team based on the promise of those top prospects. And in that ranking system, the Bruins ranked dead last at No. 32.

"The Bruins being in last place is a combination of a lack of picks, and the few picks they've had - such as John Beecher - not developing all that well," Pronman wrote of the Bruins. "Beecher, Fabian Lysell and Mason Lohrei lead this system, and they all look like they're going to be NHL players, but there doesn't look to be much depth or impact in this system."

Lysell scored 22 goals with 40 assists for 62 points in 53 games for the WHL Vancouver Giants last year, before registering 21 points (4-17-21) in 12 playoff games. Beecher posted 3-2-5 totals in nine games for the Providence Bruins last year, also tallying one assist in two playoff games. He finished up his Michigan career with just six goals and nine assists in 34 games last season. Lohrei, a 6-foot-4 defenseman, tallied 25 assists and scored four goals in 31 games last year, his first at Ohio State University.

The Bruins dropped to No. 32 from No. 29 last year, with Jeremy Swayman and Jack Studnicka aging out of the evaluation system.

The lack of prospects in the system will surely make Don Sweeney's job more difficult in the coming year, as the Bruins currently just have five forwards (Brad Marchand, Taylor Hall, Charlie Coyle, Jake DeBrusk, Oskar Steen) signed beyond the upcoming 2022-23 season. Additionally, the Bruins are likely to have $4.5 million counting against their salary cap next season, stemming from Bergeron's and Krejci's performance bonuses -- clauses that were necessary in order to fit the players under this year's salary cap.

An infusion of young, low-cost talent would go a long way in helping to ensure the competitive stability of the Bruins beyond the next season, but no such help appears to be on the way.