BOSTON – Marc McLaughlin admits that it was a difficult end to his training camp last fall.
Despite a strong showing, the Boston College product found himself in Providence to start the 2022-23 season with the Bruins’ roster fully solidified for what became a historic campaign.
“At times it can be, yeah,” McLaughlin said when asked if it was “tough to swallow” his demotion last fall. “But, they had a great team last year. You can't get frustrated about that. I think I definitely had things I needed to go and work on in Providence and I think I made some good strides there.
“I think I made a lot of strides this summer, too, working on all kinds of different things with the skating coaches here and around Massachusetts. So, I'm excited for this year.”
The Billerica native tallied 30 points (13 goals, 17 assists) in 66 games for Providence last season, his first full pro campaign. McLaughlin played just two games with Boston after suiting up for 11 contests (with three goals) at the end of the 2021-22 season upon his arrival from Chestnut Hill.
“I think I made a lot of strides towards the end of the year in Providence and kept getting better and better and getting used to the pace of the pro-style,” said the 24-year-old. “I'm ready to try to make a push here to make the team.”
McLaughlin is well aware of the opportunity within the Bruins’ forward group, particularly down the middle of the ice following the departures of Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci. As such, the 6-foot, 203-pounder has put a focus on rounding out his 200-foot game.
“Obviously, there's a lot of guys fighting for a little amount of spots,” said McLaughlin. “I'm trying to control what I can, right? And that's my effort and it's going out there and working 110% and just being a master of the details. And then taking care of that end and playing a good two-way game is what I take pride in. So, I'm looking forward to doing that.”
McLaughlin added that another one of his focal points has been adjusting to the grind of the professional schedule, which is over twice as long as what he was used to at the college level.
"You definitely become accustomed to it and you learn how to kind of take care of your body, the battle with nutrition and all those different things that that makes you a good pro,” he said. “I think I'm definitely getting a grasp on that and I'm feeling really good heading into camp.”
Bruins coach Jim Montgomery has been pleased with McLaughlin’s versatility, noting that he has “stood out” to this point in training camp.
“He did have a good camp last year. You’re bang on on that,” said Montgomery. “I think that this year he's having another good camp so far. He's stood out and we talked to him about how we're going to give him opportunities on right wing and center because we just don't know the makeup of our team this year like we did last year as far as centers, especially.”
During Saturday’s session, Montgomery had McLaughlin centering fellow Boston College alum Patrick Brown and one of his childhood idols Milan Lucic.
“That was really cool,” McLaughlin said of skating with Lucic. “When I grew up, he was one of the guys I looked up to and the way he played, the style, the amount of heart he plays with. So, it's pretty cool now to be having some conversations with him and getting our skate alongside him.
“He's won the Cup…he plays with so much emotion and he brings it every single day. And he's a great leader from what I've seen so far. There's definitely a lot to take away from his game and that type of person he is.”