Bruins Sign Undrafted Cornell Standout Free Agent

The Boston Bruins landed one of the better under-the-radar prospects in college hockey by signing Cornell standout Dalton Bancroft, the club announced Thursday.

Bancroft, 24, inked a one-year, entry-level contract, which will begin next season and have an NHL cap hit of $950,000.  

The 6-foot-3, 207-pound forward will join the Providence Bruins on an amateur tryout for the remainder of the 2024-25 campaign. He played three seasons for the Big Red, posting 36 goals and 79 points across 103 total games for the program from 2022 through 2025. Bancroft tallied a career-high 15 goals in 36 games this season. In the 2023-24 season, the Madoc, Ontario native posted a career-high 31 points in 34 games, helping Cornell win the ECAC championship and advance to the NCAA Tournament.

Prior to moving to the college ranks, Bancroft was the Ontario Junior Hockey League’s leading scorer, with 92 points in 54 games for the Golden Hawks in 2021-22 to earn MVP honors.

Bancroft joins three other college players — Ty Gallagher, Jake Schmaltz, and Dans Locmelis — as spring signings for the Bruins. Bancroft is the lone signee who was not drafted by the Bruins, but he did attend the organization’s development camp this past summer at Warrior Ice Arena.