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Best-case scenario for Bruins is the success of a Charlie McAvoy-Mason Lohrei pairing

Mason Lohrei can learn alot from Charlie McAvoy, just like Zdeno Chara did for McAvoy in the past.

Charlie McAvoy wouldn't be where he is today without the guidance and leadership of Zdeno Chara. Chara took McAvoy under his wing immediately, and it is still paying dividends for the American-born defenseman. While the Boston Bruins attempted to use the same strategy for Mason Lohrei, he wasn't able to take on the responsibility of playing on the first pair with McAvoy early in his career.

After Lohrei's defensive struggles last season, the Bruins knew that something needed to change. It was clear that he wasn't yet able to carry a pairing on his own, a situation that arose due to the injuries to McAvoy and Hampus Lindholm. With both defensemen now healthy, Lohrei can now get some much-needed help from the team's best blue-liner.

"Obviously, he's one of the best defensemen in the world," Lohrei told reporters after Sunday's game. "He has such an impact on the game. The guy is incredible, and I love playing with him."

McAvoy also spoke glowingly about his partner, speaking for nearly two minutes about how much he enjoys playing with Lohrei and how he hopes to be a sounding board for him as he grows. McAvoy was also a bit more direct about his role as a mentor, mentioning that Chara did it for him, and he wants to pay it forward for Lohrei.

As long as both players stay healthy, it's likely that McAvoy and Lohrei will be the team's first pair for the duration of the season. If Lohrei can show potential to be the next in the Bruins' defensive lineage, McAvoy will prove to be even more valuable than his play on the ice.

Kirill Yemelyanov is another intriguing offensive prospect in the Bruins' pipeline

Kirill Yemelyanov is turning some heads a low-risk option for the Bruins.

Kirill Yemelyanov might not be one of those Russian prospects who take the KHL by storm in the first season after their draft year. Still, his success early in the MHL (Russia's equivalent of the CHL) is an excellent sign that he could be a steal for the organization. After all, the Bruins took a chance on him in the sixth round of this past year's draft, which already looks like a successful draft with some of the selections.

Yemelyanov offering some value in the sixth round would be another addition to the list with James Hagens, William Moore, and Cooper Simpson. Simpson is already looking like a low-risk gamble on high-end skill, and Yemelyanov is another example of that. He has six goals and two assists through six games with Loko Yaroslavl in the MHL, and could be on his way to getting some KHL time this season.

The one thing holding Yemelyanov back from succeeding against men would be his size. At 6-foot-0 and just 170 pounds, he will need to do some serious growing if he's going to play against the best in the KHL and even more growing if he's going to hold up in North America. Yemelyanov is definitely a project and is in no way near contributing in North America, but it's good to see some early success.

Yemelyanov isn't just an offensive threat. He is reliable in the defensive zone and is physical for his size. While his current body won't hold up playing that way, if he continues to grow and get stronger, he'll have no problem throwing that weight around. While questions will always remain about whether Yemelyanov will ever come to North America, he has a style of game that could succeed here.

The Russian has never played outside of his home country, which doesn't necessarily mean the Bruins will have trouble getting him to North America. Still, it's always something that the team has to consider when taking a chance on a European player. It's usually a safer bet to draft a European player who already has experience playing in the CHL or USHL, unless they are a high-end prospect destined for the NHL.