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Player: Jack Ahcan
Ranking: #10
Last Season: St. Cloud State University
Last Season Stats: 33GP, 7G, 18A, 25PTS
Acquired: Undrafted, signed two-year, entry level contract on March 27, 2020
With the hockey world on hold during the pandemic, the Boston Bruins stayed busy and signed two undrafted NCAA free agents, including Jack Ahcan.
The Savage, Minn. native put up impressive numbers at St. Cloud State University during his collegiate career.
- He was the third defenseman in the school’s history to reach over 100 points.
- In 144 games, he accumulated 21 goals and 82 assists for 103 points.
- Ahcan captained the Huskies his senior year and earned several honors during his tenure.
- Although this year was cut short, he still managed to come away with 25 points in 33 games.
His size and style of play has led to comparisons to Torey Krug. Ahcan comes in at 5’ 8” and 184 pounds.
Heck, a lot about him can be compared to Krug: they both started in the USHL, both are left-handed defensemen, both were undrafted and both have a similar playing style.
The 23-year-old, left-handed shooter has been described as a “modern-day defenseman.” He’s offensive-minded and not afraid to take a shot.
In his last season, he had 72 shots on net. As shown below, he likes to pinch in and play low behind the net.
Jack Ahcan puts it in the net making it a 4-2 game against Miami at the beginning of the 3rd. pic.twitter.com/d7hoUtX00g
— Husky Productions (@hphky) March 16, 2019
Huskies strike first off a smooth goal from Jack Ahcan! Huskies take the lead 1-0 with 3 minutes expired in the 2nd. Go Huskies! #SCSUonFSN @fsnorth @MarkDParrish @Fox9Sports pic.twitter.com/TnqlWNilyR
— Husky Productions (@hphky) December 14, 2019
Ahcan went under the radar for most of his college career, but definitely picked up steam in the latter half. He’s a smart player and has spacial awareness. Most of all, he’s an unselfish player with vision, registering 82 assists during his time at St. Cloud.
Huskies are rolling! Beautiful play from Jack Ahcan who assists on the Easton Brodzinski goal! Huskies take a demanding 4-0 lead with 10 minutes left in the 3rd period. #SCSUvsFSN @fsnorth @MarkDParrish @Fox9Sports pic.twitter.com/ejOUfEwUgx
— Husky Productions (@hphky) December 14, 2019
At his core though, he is still a defenseman, protecting the net with 206 blocked shots during four seasons at St. Cloud.
It also can’t hurt that Ahcan suited up with another Bruins’ blueliner before: Ahcan and Charlie McAvoy were teammates on the US National Junior Team in 2017 and earned a gold medal.
Given the logjam of players in front of him, it will be tough for Ahcan to immediately break into the Bruins’ roster. However, he could crack into the bottom half of the lineup down the road, especially being left-handed.
Plus, we’ll see what happens this off-season with contracts, as any departures could open up more space.
Overall, Ahcan should work his way into the lineup eventually. He’s likely to play a full year or two in Providence as he adjusts to the pro game, but he appears to be quite a signing for the Bruins, who have a great track record with undrafted NCAA players.
Projection for next year: Providence, probably with a few call-ups in to Boston sprinkled in.