It was Cole Chandler’s strong second half and two-way game that convinced the Boston Bruins to pick him in the recent NHL draft.
The Bruins called the Bedford centre’s name in the fifth round, thanks in large part to the way he raised his play down the stretch and in the playoffs for the QMJHL’s Shawinigan Cataractes.
“Al Bissonette, our Quebec scout…we follow the kids all year long, we’re not just waiting on the first part of the season,” Bruins general manager Don Sweeney said in a post-draft media session. “In his case, he was coming off injury and had been sick the summer before, getting his feet back under him, feeling better, probably trying to put on some weight, feeling more comfortable as the season went along, feeling more comfortable in the league, with his own team – and that was noted.
“Guys now going back in, as our area (scouts) do, draw the crossover guys back in to identify a player playing better as the season goes along. It’s usually an indicator that his competitive level is going up as the games get more important.”
Going at 133rd overall was a nice boost for Chandler, who was ranked 172nd among North American skaters by the NHL Central Scouting Service ahead of the draft. The six-foot-two, 176-pound pivot was Shawinigan’s first-round pick (16th overall) in 2023 but was limited to just 25 games as a rookie. He rebounded with 32 points in 64 games during the 2024-25 regular season.
“Obviously, it was tough in my 16-year-old (season) getting injured,” Chandler said in a media session at the Bruins’ development camp a few days ago. “I’m away from my family and I kind of lost a lot of confidence in myself. Coming back, I wasn’t sure what to expect from this season. I kind of had high expectations, but I wasn’t really mentally there in the start of the season
“So coming back in after Christmas and getting my head reset and getting my confidence back, just being comfortable out there on the ice, I had huge success. And our team, too. We obviously had a great run in the playoffs. So just getting comfortable and confident in myself and knowing what I am able to do (really helped).”
The big clincher for the Bruins was Chandler’s play in the post-season. He blossomed with 12 points in 16 playoff games, tying for third on the Cataractes.
“He plays a little bit more of a traditional two-way game,” Bruins director of amateur scouting Ryan Nadeau said to Eric Russo of nhl.com. “The offensive part has been there. He didn’t have huge numbers this year, it’s not like he was scoring 50 goals. But he’s a kid who is counted on in some key times and has been able to impact 200 feet of the rink. A player that we really like that part of his game.”
As a silver lining, Chandler described how going through the tough transition into the Q as a rookie helped him keep from being overwhelmed in his first sessions in Boston. He explained how the process of picking himself up after losing his way early on in Shawinigan was a good lesson in how to stay mentally strong and not be intimidated in the face of new challenges.
“It’s just getting my confidence back and knowing you’re not going to be comfortable in every situation,” he said. “It’s just learning about yourself and learning what type of player you are.”