When you take a glance at the Bruins prospect pool, it may be hard to find many names that jump out at you. There’s certainly plenty of talent in that pool, but the Bruins lack a well-known name like a Owen Power, Devon Levi or Jake Sanderson.
While there’s excitement about the futures of prospects such as Fabian Lysell, John Beecher and Brett Harrison, defenseman Mason Lohrei could be the cream of the crop and sooner rather than later, one of the Bruins more valuable prospects.
Lohrei was born into hockey as his dad David has been a longtime coach with head coaching stops in the USHL, CHL, ECHL and now high school in Wisconsin. He also spent three seasons as an assistant coach at Miami (Ohio) University.
“I got into the sport from my dad, he coached pro hockey for a lot of years. He coached junior, college and then pro,” the younger Lohrei told HockeyBuzz. “We still kind of share that passion, he’s a great guy to have around, someone to talk too.”
With his dad having the experience he does in hockey as a head coach, it’s a resource that Mason can tap into, picking the brain of his dad. Not necessarily from a father’s point of view, but a coaches' one instead.
“When we have those conversations, he’s more of a coach and a good hockey mind instead of being my dad. Any game I play, he’s always there. He won’t say anything unless I ask him which I appreciate, but I always ask him because I value his opinion and I know he knows what he’s talking about,” said Lohrei.
Lohrei hasn’t always been a defensemen, playing most of his hockey life as a forward. But with playing time hard to come by in high school, Lohrei made the switch to defense, a change that rejuvenated his game and catapulted him to future success.
“I switched as a sophomore in high school, playing at Culver Military Academy. I switched because I wasn’t playing as much as a forward,” said Lohrei. “I was fourth line, getting scratched and then we had two defensemen get hurt so I offered to step in and they let me and then I haven’t looked back since.”
Making a position switch at the age Lohrei did is not something that helps put you on radars of junior leagues and colleges, but Lohrei was an exception to that, making his way to the USHL and the Green Bay Gamblers.
It was there where Lohrei took his game to the next level, developing into one of the USHL’s most prolific defensemen.
Last year—his last in the USHL—Lohrei was named the USHL Defenseman of the Year and set a Gamblers’ single season record for most points by a defenseman with 59. He finished his USHL tenure with 96 points in 105 games.
“I think going in I was a lot more confident [going into year two] just because of how my first year went pretty well and playing with confidence,” said Lohrei. “I try not to focus too much on the points and stuff. I just like to produce in any way I can and help the team win. If that’s scoring goals, making plays and getting assists, blocking shots, killing penalties, whatever it is, I’m willing to do it and take pride in doing it.”
Before Lohrei began his final year with Green Bay, he was drafted by the Bruins, selected in the second round of the 2020 draft. From Torey Krug, to Charlie McAvoy and Matt Grzelcyk, the Bruins have had some success lately developing offensive defensemen who have come out of college hockey.
Lohrei hopes he can continue that trend.
“That’s something that is cool to see, just other guys that have been through the same process and obviously what they’ve done in the NHL, especially with the Bruins,” said Lohrei. "I was out [in Boston] this summer and I learned a lot being out there for development camp and then continuing on throughout the year, talking to all the development guys. I’m just really excited to be able to work with them into the future and hopefully be there one day.”
Lohrei was draft eligible the year prior, going undrafted. In fact, he wasn’t even listed on Central Scouting’s final rankings, something that sticks with him today.
“Obviously hearing your name called is pretty special. It’s cliché, everyone says it, but it’s truly a dream come true and something I’ve worked for for a long time,” he said. “I think for me it’s even a little more special just because the year before I didn’t get picked and that gave me a little chip on my shoulder and try to prove people wrong.”
Proving people wrong is something Lohrei continues to do. When it came down to decide where he wanted to play college hockey, he didn’t have many schools knocking on the door. Ultimately it was Ohio State that showed interest and where Lohrei would land.
“I had only been a defensemen for six months when I first started talking to Ohio State. I had some conversations with other schools, but they were the first team to have me on a visit and the first team to offer. I never visited or received and offer from anyone else,” said Lohrei.
“Having a great time so far and soaking it all in. I love it, I’m glad I chose to come here.”
Of the seven teams in the Big Ten, the Buckeyes were picked to finish last in the conference in the preseason coaches' poll. But, much like Lohrei has continued to do, Ohio State continues to prove people wrong, entering the weekend third in the conference, five points behind Michigan.
The Buckeyes host Michigan this weekend for a big conference set.
“I’m really excited for our group, I think we can go on to do a lot of things. Obviously we were overlooked at the beginning of the year with being ranked last in the Big Ten and all that,” said Lohrei. “That gives our whole group extra drive and we’ve been proving people wrong so far and we plan to do that for the rest of the season.”
Individual success has been easy to come by for Lohrei, leading the team with 10 assists and 12 points entering the weekend. Lohrei is tied for 10th among all college hockey freshman in points, and is tied for fourth among freshman defensemen.
“I think my game as a forward translates to how I play now and how I love to be offensive, I love that part of the game,” said Lohrei. “Over the past four years of being a defenseman, it’s learning new stuff every year about being more defensive and being smart in that way.”
Lohrei is at best a year away from putting on a Bruins sweater and making an immediate impact, similar to that of Krug, Grzelcyk and McAvoy. For now, Lohrei will continue his development with Ohio State and continue to prove people wrong.
“We got a good team this year, I think we’re still finding our identity and learning every week,” Lohrei said. "We have a lot of good players and it’s really good to be able to play with them and practice with them every week.”
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Prospect Reports:
Nathan Smith - Minnesota State/Jets Prospect
Josh Doan – Arizona State/Coyotes Prospect
Scott Morrow – UMass/Hurricanes Prospect 
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