Bruins place former top prospect on waivers

Chris Johnston of TSN and The Athletic reported Wednesday that the Bruins claimed defenseman Ian Mitchell off waivers to assign him to Providence of the AHL.

Mitchell, 24, was named to the Bruins’ Opening Night roster earlier this month after Boston acquired the rights to acquire him in the Taylor Hall trade with the Blackhawks last summer.
But he’s only played in two of six games this season, and now that he’s played limited minutes in his one Bruins appearance, he could play for any team in the league.

Mitchell has 17 points, four goals and 13 assists in 84 games since turning pro with the Blackhawks in 2020.
Injuries limited him to just 35 games with Chicago and five with Rockford in the AHL last season, but he shined in the minors with two goals and four assists in those five games.

Mitchell was a second-round pick by the Blackhawks in 2017 and looked like a prospect after three strong seasons at the University of Denver, scoring 18 goals, 71 assists and 89 points in 116 games.
He has had solid performances in the AHL since turning pro, but his scoring numbers have yet to translate to NHL play.
One reason for this is that he hasn’t averaged more than 16 minutes a night over the course of a season, resulting in very few possessions against weaker competition.
He will need to improve his defensive game if he is going to do everyday work in the NHL.

That said, his strong showing in the AHL could be enough to convince a team to take a flyer on him and file a claim.
Ultimately, he will earn a league minimum salary of $775,000 on a one-year deal and will be under team control as a restricted free agent after the season.

It’s unclear if the Bruins will make the trade tomorrow after clearing Mitchell from waivers. Losing Mitchell to waivers or sending him to Providence would leave the team with just 13 forwards and six defensemen, with injured forward Milan Lucic out on a day-to-day basis.