Fraser Minten, hopes as a Vancouver youngster crushed by the Bruins, might be a lasting fit after trade to Boston

Boston Globe

15-03-2025

'Absolutely,' recalled Minten, who, some 14 years later, was welcomed into the Bruins organization via the trade last Friday that sent
Brandon Carlo
to the Maple Leafs. 'That is a core memory that comes with some tears for 7-year-old Fraser.'
Minten, who'll turn 21 in July, figures now he would like nothing more than to find a successful, lasting fit in the Black and Gold sweater that became a symbol of his crushed childhood dreams. Ditto for the Bruins, who view the 6-foot-2-inch, left-shot center as a prime prospect who potentially could ramp up quickly through AHL Providence and shift his NHL career into full traction with that Spoked-B on his chest.
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The Bruins remain in critical need of a point-producing center, particularly a pivot with top-six promise, now two seasons after the retirements of
Patrice Bergeron
and
David Krejci
. The pricey addition of
Elias Lindholm
last July meant to fill that void proved folly.
Matt Poitras
(now in Providence) still needs time to develop. Sometimes center
Pavel Zacha
fits best on the wing. If Minten has the goods — as hinted in the 16 games (2-2–4) he's played for Toronto — then Boston is the land of opportunity.
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'He has a lot of
Charlie Coyle's
qualities as a player,' general manager
Don Sweeney
said the day of the trade, also emphasizing the high regard for Minten's leadership qualities, 'that I hope he grows into.'
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Minten, who'll suit up for a third game with Providence on Sunday afternoon in Springfield, came to the Maple Leafs as the 38th pick in the 2022 draft. His play for the Toronto varsity over the last two seasons, though limited, gave the appearance he was positioned to be central to the franchise's next young talent infusion, particularly with veteran center
John Tavares
on an expiring, high-cap contract ($11 million) this season.
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'I didn't want to leave,' said Minten, who played most of the time for the AHL Toronto Marlies. 'I had nothing but good things going for me in Toronto and really liked it there — so it wasn't something I was looking for, but I definitely knew [getting traded] was a possibility.'
Potential for a move made sense in part because, much like the Bruins, the Leafs in recent years surrendered draft picks around the trade deadline to shape their roster for a potential deep playoff run. The depleted number of picks left today's GM in Toronto,
Brad Treliving
, with little choice but to surrender a prospect to add Carlo, who filled a key need as a top-four defenseman and primo penalty killer.
Sweeney also acquired two draft picks, including a conditional first-rounder in 2026, as part of the swap. If Minten indeed matures into that point-producing center's role, the deal would rank among the best in Sweeney's 10-year tenure in the corner office. With the franchise about to log its first playoff DNQ since 2016, his continued tenure as GM could turn on whether last Friday's 'fixes' quickly wiggle the Bruins back to being bona fide Cup contenders.
For his part, Minten said he was thrilled upon learning he'd been sent to such a 'sick' organization as the Bruins — yes, fellow Boomers, sick is a good sick — and hoped one day soon to explore Boston. His total time in the Hub, he figures, amounts to some 36 hours, a stop here 8-10 years ago when he joined his grandparents on a cruise that went from the Canadian Maritimes to the Hub of Hockey.
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'Let's see … that's a long time ago … but we went to Harvard, and toured the campus,' recalled Minten, reached by phone as he drove to Rochester, N.Y., this past week, following a stop in Toronto to tidy up visa issues. 'We also went to Fenway Park, that was awesome … the first time I saw a major league game, so that was really cool. I'd definitely love to get there for another game.'
The Wall, per usual, made its lasting impression on the first-time Fenway visitor from British Columbia.
'I definitely have a vivid memory of the Monster,' noted Minten, regrettably yet to learn proper 'MON-stuh' pronunciation. 'I think there was a home run hit over it during that game … but … I could be just making that up, I don't really remember.'
There is no universal Canadian experience when it comes to learning hockey or chasing the NHL dream. Contrary to the common US perception, not every kid there grows up on remote farmland (good morning to the Sutter brothers in Viking, Alberta) and first skates on a frozen patch carved out next to the barn. In and around Vancouver, the more common experience is for players to learn the game in rinks in large, hockey-crazed suburbs north, east, and south of the city.
In that sense, Minten was an anomaly, taking his first strides right downtown on the streets around his family's apartment building. His learn-to-play scenario tracks with that of ex-Bruin great
Rick Middleton
, who grew up in the Scarborough section of Toronto and often credits his endless hours of street/ball hockey for building and refining his skills, particularly stickhandling.
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'Honestly, there's almost no kids I played with, or went to school with, or played near me,' who went on to take the game seriously, said Minten. 'I was a city boy. There was a lot of street hockey for me. Vancouver didn't have outdoor rinks — it doesn't get cold enough — so it was [roller]blades and running shoes for me to kind of get involved in the game.'
Then, too, there was piano, the chopsticks and hockey sticks phase of his life.
Young Fraser Minten, at his parents' urging (read: insistence) began playing at age 8, and took lessons faithfully until age 14 when his proficiency on the black and white keys, as judged by the Royal Conservatory of Music, earned him high school course credits. He put aside the piano and had more time to play hockey, which ultimately led him to top junior (Western Hockey League), the NHL Draft, and the Leafs.
It can be hard to find a piano while building a life darting from rink to rink, noted Minten, but he still enjoys playing when time and circumstance permit. A number of online video clips show he has an excellent touch.
'Lately, I've been learning 'Clair de Lune,' ' said Minten, referring to a classical piece by
Claude Debussy
that translates as 'Moonlight.' 'It's been a work in progress for me, definitely one of my favorites to listen to and fun to learn. Like regular music, you listen to something for a while and then move on to something new. But that's what I've been jamming to recently, I guess you could say.'
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If there's a connection to tickling the ivories and the skills required to chase after a chunk of vulcanized rubber, Minten has yet to find it.
'No idea,' he said. 'Maybe a neuroscientist could figure it out, but I don't see any correlation.'
He is the piano man. And for the Bruins, center is a position sad and sweet, and ready for a younger man's clothes.
TRADE DEADLINE THOUGHTS
Winner and losers? To come
We'll know in the coming weeks how the winners and losers shake out across the league from the many NHL deadline deals on March 7.
The one that looks No. 1 from here right now was made weeks earlier, the Avalanche acquiring
Martin Necas
in the Jan. 24 swap with Carolina for
Mikko Rantanen
. Necas has fit in seamlessly and productively with Colorado (17 games: 6-11–17), while Rantanen, uh, well, not so much.
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The 6-foot-4-inch Rantanen all but flatlined (13 games: 2-4–6) with the Hurricanes, who turned around and flipped him to the Stars at the trade deadline. Not the kind of action we typically see around elite performers.
Per Carolina coach
Rod Brind'Amour
, Rantanen informed the Hurricanes they were not on a list of four teams with whom he cared to continue his career. Rantanen, with an eight-year/$96 million extension inked in Big D, said he never made such a claim.
Avalanche GM
Chris MacFarland
, whose playing career topped out at club hockey at Pace University, also landed free-agent-to-be
Brock Nelson
from the Islanders. The 6-4 Nelson moved into the No. 2 pivot hole behind
Nathan MacKinnon
, and also allowed the Avalanche to move
Casey
Mittelstadt
to the Bruins for
Charlie Coyle
(best utilized as a No. 3 center).
It looks as if MacFarland won the overall swap meet, though he surrendered real assets in Rantanen and a top prospect, 6-2
Calum Ritchie
, in the Nelson swap. The 27th pick in the 2023 draft, Ritchie is wrapping up a solid junior career at OHL Oshawa and could challenge for a roster spot at Islanders camp in September.
On the flip side, the Sabres grew curiouser and curiouser, dealing young, right-shot center
Dylan Cozens
to Ottawa for another young center, with a left shot, in
Josh Norris
. Both are solid players with promising futures, but they are sort of the same player and Norris has an injury history.
For the Sabres, who just can't seem to get out of their own way, it feels like a sideways move. Meanwhile, Cozens goes to a Senators club that finally looks as if it will make the playoffs. In other words, he is in hockey heaven, considering the Sabres will continue a string in which they have not made the playoffs since the spring of 2011.
Also,
Luke Schenn
began the week with the Predators, where he signed in the summer of 2023. He then was dished Wednesday to the Penguins in a deal that sent
Michael Bunting
to Nashville. Schenn was on the move again, dished at the trade deadline to the Jets for a second-round pick in 2026. Schenn has been a valued blue-line horse for a long time (1,058 games) and for a lot of clubs (now nine total). But at age 35, on a Jets team structured on speed, he looks like a curious fit back there.
Rantanen (right) all but flatlined (13 games: 2-4–6) with the Hurricanes before being shipped to Dallas.
Ethan Cairns/Associated Press
MAN'S BEST FRIENDS
Swayman recalls trail days
Jeremy Swayman
, proud son of a podiatrist and of Anchorage, can also boast that in years past he volunteered at the start line for the state's annual iconic Iditarod Sled Dog Race, which wrapped up Friday.
'Booties,' mused a smiling Swayman, thinking back fondly to his volunteer days as a teenager. 'I helped put the booties on all the dogs.'
Of course he did. Heck, when your dad's a podiatrist, feet are the name of the game. Even an amateur musher knows that a dog's only as good as the footwear that can withstand the constant beating of a race that typically lasts 10-12 days across snowy, rough, and oft-unforgiving terrain.
This year's Iditarod was its 53rd iteration and it covered 1,128 miles from Fairbanks to Nome — the longest version of the run ever. A paucity of snow this winter meant pushing off well north of the usual starting point in Willow (north of Anchorage).
'It's pretty special,' noted Swayman. 'My dad [
Ken
] had Kristy as a patient and we got to become really close with her, and she had us come out to the kennel a bunch of times and meet the dogs and feed 'em and see what it's like.'
Kristy Berington
is among the sport's top female mushers and owns and operates Seeing Double Sled Dog Racing in Knik, Alaska, not far from Anchorage.
Swayman owns Jade, a female mushing dog, who is his constant companion when he returns to Alaska each summer to fish and walk trails — bear spray at the ready.
His start line duty, said Swayman, included helping to fit each dog with four booties and generally keeping the revved-up canines in order before the race began.
'You help harness 'em and just keep 'em ready to go,' he said, 'and keep 'em calm because they're so excited to run.'
Swayman has not been at the finish line in Nome, which, he said, 'is in the middle of nowhere.'
As an elite athlete, he can appreciate what the Iditarod men, women, and their many four-legged friends must endure on the grueling course.
'The stuff that they go through is unmatched,' said Swayman. 'Obviously, the weather, like negative-50 wind chill, and then the isolation at times. It's no joke. It's a journey … a lot of respect for the Iditarod participants and the dogs.'
This year
Jessie Holmes
was crowned champion when he barreled his faithful charges across the finish line at 2:55 a.m. (Who wins anything at 2:55 a.m.?) Winning time: 10 days and some 15 hours.
On top of his winner's share of the $500,000 pot, Holmes picked up additional prizes that included $4,500 in cash, $4,500 in gold nuggets, and 25 pounds of salmon.
It was not immediately known if new booties were part of the bounty.
Jeremy Swayman recalled helping put the booties on dogs involved in the Iditarod race.
Amanda Loman/Associated Press
Loose pucks
One of
Fraser
Minten's
teammates at WHL Kamloops was fellow centerman
Logan Stankoven
, the 22-year-old rookie shipped from Dallas to Carolina March 7 in the deal that brought
Mikko
Rantanen
to the Stars …The Sabres will have gone 14 years without an appearance in the postseason. The cap figure across those 14 years has gone from $64.3 million to $88 million. Figuring owner
Terry Pegula
has averaged some $75 million in annual payroll, that puts him right around $1 billion over that term without selling a single playoff ticket … Gone and almost forgotten:
Jordan Oesterle
, the journeyman who filled in for 22 games and logged 1-5–6 along the Bruins blue line this season. He was plucked off waivers by Nashville before the March 7 deluge … Reminder: veteran coach
Joel Quenneville
was granted absolution last July by commissioner
Gary Bettman
, clearing the path for the ex-Blackhawks coach (with three Cup wins) to get back behind a bench. He'll be 67 in September, a bit gray by today's NHL standards, but it's a surprise he hasn't been hired. Look for that to change this offseason, if not sooner. Quenneville resigned in Florida, where he began the season 7-0-0, as part of the ugly fallout in Chicago related to the
Kyle Beach
sexual assault case … Ex-Bruins blue liner
Dougie Hamilton
, who missed most of last season because of a torn pectoral muscle (and subsequent surgery) will be out of the Devils lineup for weeks because of a lower-body injury. It's possible he'll get back if the Devils, also without primo center
Jack Hughes
, can get on a long playoff run. Had
Jakub Zboril
stuck around the Rock after his professional tryout contract in September, he might be back in the NHL on the Devils blue line. Zboril, one of the trio of first-round picks by the Bruins in 2015, instead returned to Czechia, where he signed a five-year deal with Pardubice, the city known for
Dominik Hasek
and its trademark gingerbread …
Brad Marchand
, when reminiscing this past week about his early days in Boston, credited his time spent with
Mark Recchi
as helping him to understand the dedication needed to have a long, successful NHL career. 'He was 82 years old, doing wind sprints on the treadmill after the game,' said a smiling Marchand, 'and I'm eating a slice of pizza. I'm like, 'Wow, I might need to change a few things here.' '
Kevin Paul Dupont can be reached at