Tyler Boucher, a 4.5-star freshman at Boston University, announced over the semester break that he was going to sign with the Ottawa Senators after appearing in eight games for the Terriers in the first half of the season. Upon signing with the Senators, Boucher was assigned to the Ottawa 67’s of the OHL.
“The size skill combo is high-end, he is strong and smart,” our scouts said about the first-round pick. He sees the ice well and makes plays. Puck protection and the shot are good.”
Last week, Boucher spoke to the media about his decision to leave the program.
“Definitely very difficult. I committed there about four years ago. So I’ve known them for a long while and built a relationship with them. But at the end of the day, I think they understood,” Boucher said. “They want what’s best for me and they were very supportive. So I can’t thank them enough for that.”
“I was excited to go to BU and that’s kind of what I had my mind set on. I wasn’t really thinking anywhere else. Coming into Christmas time, that’s when it started to creep into my head a little bit,” said Boucher. “I was always all in at BU. When I was there, we’re focused on winning. I wasn’t thinking about anywhere else. It was just kind of waiting until the break to think about it because I’m on a team and I owe it to them to be there every day and not think about other options.”
Boucher led Hockey East with 34 penalty minutes and was suspended for a game earlier this season.
His father, NHL analyst and former NHL goalie Brian Boucher, was public about his distaste for Hockey East officiating earlier this year.
Boucher, who rarely tweets, posted on Oct. 23:
At the time of the tweet, BU was in the middle of a game against Merrimack. There were 14 minor penalties called in the game and Boucher was penalized twice.
“I think I went through a little bit of adversity. I don’t think it went the way I thought it was going to go. But I guess that’s part of hockey,” said Boucher. “It’s not always going to be great. I felt maybe it wasn’t the best fit for me.”
