How Ian Mitchell's connection with Jim Montgomery has Helped him Adapt in Boston

It’s not all new faces for Ian Mitchell during his first training camp with the Boston Bruins.

The defenseman, who was traded from the Chicago Blackhawks in June as part of the Taylor Hall-centered swap, has reunited with coach Jim Montgomery, whom Mitchell played for at the University of Denver in the 2017-18 season.

Montgomery’s final season at the helm for Denver before departing for the Dallas Stars was Mitchell’s freshman campaign with the program, and through three years with the Pioneers, he became a dependable piece of their defensive core.

When Mitchell was shipped to Boston after a lackluster stint in Chicago, it was the opportunity for a new beginning with an old friend.

“I honestly couldn’t have been more thrilled,” Mitchell told reporters Wednesday.

”Some guys maybe aren’t too happy to be traded, but to come be with ‘Monty’ again and with a team that was so successful last year, try to learn from the established D-core here, was something I’m really excited about.”

Mitchell is now working to reinvigorate his pro career following an inconsistent three seasons bouncing between the Blackhawks –– who selected him 57th overall in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft –– and their AHL affiliate, the Rockford IceHogs. Through 35 NHL games played in the 2022-23 season, Mitchell tallied one goal and seven assists.

The good thing for Mitchell coming into camp is he had a sense of what a coach like Montgomery expects out of his players, and the 24-year-old has tried to adjust his game accordingly in the Bruins’ first two preseason matchups.

“Overall, I think I liked it. I think the first started a little slow, but I got better as the game went on,” Mitchell said of his performance on Tuesday against the Buffalo Sabres.

“So far it’s been positive, telling me to play aggressively on my toes, offensively and defensively. That’s something that ‘Monty’ has always stressed, so just having that comfortability, knowing what the expectation is has helped me for sure.”

Mitchell skated in a defensive pair with Frederic Brunet on Tuesday and had a pretty productive night where he pushed the puck in transition and got some quality looks on net with nine total shot attempts.

“I thought he’s been good in both games, but I thought he started to really assert himself in the last few periods,” Montgomery told reporters Wednesday. “I thought he was on top of his toes, playing north, taking away time and space, he had the puck a lot.”

While Mitchell is a righty, and practiced in a pair with left-shot Mason Lohrei during Wednesday’s camp, he said he’s comfortable playing on his off-side if needed.

“They could tell me to play goalie and I’ll do it,” Mitchell said. “Whatever I can try to earn myself a spot on the roster.”

It’s an added benefit that Montgomery knows the type of player and person Mitchell is. When the two worked together in Denver, Mitchell posted his top-scoring collegiate season with two goals and 28 assists and was a key part of the squad’s power play.

“It’s huge honestly just knowing that there’s someone behind the bench that knows my game and is comfortable with me. It definitely gives me some confidence everytime I hop onto the ice,” Mitchell said.

Unlike their forward pool, there’s not much wiggle room in the B’s backend as a solid chunk of that core returned –– not to mention the award-winning tandem of Linus Ullmark and Jeremy Swayman ready to go.

Mitchell, while skating on a one-year contract with a cap hit of $775,000 after avoiding arbitration with the Bruins in July, will aim to crack that group nonetheless and use his two-way game to help his new team win.

“I think that’s somewhere that I really excel is trying to jump in and create offense for our team in transition and in the offensive zone as well,” Mitchell said.

“I’m just trying to come in and make a good impression. Of course everyone’s goal is to make the team so that’s what I’m focussed on and I think so far I’ve had a pretty good camp.”