Top Ten Boston Bruins Prospect Profiles: No. 5 Dans Locmelis
Boston Bruins On SI continues its series taking a look at the Top 10 prospects in the organization.
A former mid-round pick, Dans Ločmelis, is one of the Bruins’ NHL ready prospects and gives the organization a two-way forward that will provide both immediate value and long-term upside.
Quick Facts:
Position: Center
2025-26 Team: Providence Bruins (AHL)
2026-27 Team: Providence Bruins (AHL)
College: University of Massachusetts (2023-2025)
Draft: 2022 Round 4, #119 overall
Height: 6’0”
Weight: 179 lbs.
Nationalities: Latvian
NHL ETA: 2026-27 or 2027-28
Age: 22
Few prospects in any franchise’s prospect pool have had more success at the senior international level than Dans Ločmelis. The center represented Latvia at three World Championships and the 2026 Olympic Games, highlighted by his pair of goals to help Latvia down Germany in pool play. The impressive showing for his country has been a promising sign for the Bruins, who drafted Ločmelis in the fourth round of the 2022 draft and have seen him produce at every level from Sweden’s U20 league, to the NCAA for UMass, and most recently for Providence in the AHL.
On the offensive end, Ločmelis’ vision and playmaking stand out as key factors that will allow him to carve out a role at the NHL level. The UMass product has shown at various levels the ability to find and create passing lanes to generate opportunities for his linemates. While not an elite skater, Ločmelis is more than proficient at it, effectively using his speed on zone entries to set up the attack. In addition to his playmaking, his ability to score goals has continued to improve year over year, posting 15 goals in 43 games for the Providence Bruins during the 2025-26 season after posting the same amount across two seasons for the Minutemen.
Defensively, Ločmelis profiles as a forward that can be relied on in key spots both in shutdown minutes and on the penalty kill. He masks a slight lack of size with both his positioning and effort levels to put pressure on the opposing attack. If he can add ten pounds to his current six-foot, 179-pound frame, Ločmelis will be able to kick his effectiveness in the defensive end up another notch and be among the better defensive forwards in the NHL.
During the game against Germany at the Olympics, Ločmelis reinjured his shoulder and needed Latarjet surgery which sidelined him for the remainder of Providence’s 2025-26 season.
The Providence Bruins stated that his recovery would be approximately six months which would bring him back by camp later this month, however how the injury will impact him getting called up has yet to be determined.
Regardless of the injury, expect to see the Latvian earn his NHL debut soon. In the immediate future, he provides a cheap option as a bottom-six forward that will be effective on both ends of the ice. As he continues to develop, Ločmelis has the potential to become a quality second-line center and contribute on the penalty kill.
Boston Bruins Prospect Profiles:
No. 5 Dans Ločmelis
Follow us on Twitter/X, Facebook, YouTube, Threads, Bluesky, and Instagram for the latest Boston Bruins news.
Chris Vogel contributes to both Boston College and Boston Bruins On SI, and is also play-by-play broadcaster for ACC Network Extra and Hockey East on ESPN. He’s a graduate of the University of Massachusetts and got his master's degree at Boston College, where he served as the radio voice of Boston College Women’s Hockey on WZBC 90.3; the flagship radio network of Boston College Women’s Athletics. He’s the host of the “All Things Hockey” podcast, and covers women’s college hockey for College Hockey On SI.