Bruins prospect may be playing his way into a roster spot.

The Boston Bruins may suddenly have a fight for the 7th and final defernseman on their roster thanks to the play of 19 year old Brandon Carlo who earned some big time praise from the Bruins coaching staff following their exhibition loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets.

“Arguably our best D, if not our best D. [He showed] real good decision-making, and his gaps are good. I can really only think of one time in the third period he kind of threw a puck away in the middle of a change, and ended up on his wrong side,” said Bruins assistant coach Bruce Cassidy as per CSNNE's Joe Haggerty. “It wasn’t a bad turnover, but it was just one that he could have made a little bit of a better decision."

It was an impressive performance for such a young player, one that spanned over 20 minutes of ice time, especially when you consider he was up against players like former Stanley Cup Champion Brandon Saad. He showed a willingness to engage in physical battles in front of his own net, and his three shots on goal eventually lead to an assist on the game tying goal in the third period.

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His timing couldn't be more perfect with a Boston Bruins organization sorely in need of new blood on defense, the question now will be if Carlo can demonstrate his ability to consistently maintain this level of play over a prolonged stretch. If he can it could free up the Bruins to move a player the likes of Adam McQuaid or Kevan Miller.

He is certainly a player to watch in this preseason.