Letourneau was an interesting pick at the time, as he played Canadian prep school hockey with St. Andrews College and was on the way to the USHL. He's a massive human being, and it's clear that Sweeney and his colleagues drafted him because of his high upside, but it was a risk to take, considering he wasn't playing a very high level of hockey.
Letourneau's development curve sped up this past season when Will Smith signed his pro contract late with the San Jose Sharks. It opened up a spot for Letourneau to join the Boston College Eagles, an opportunity that he took after seemingly discussing it with the Bruins and his peers. A year after making the move, Sweeney made an interesting call to reveal to the assembled media that Letourneau's early enrollment may have been a mistake.
It was Sweeney saying the quiet part out loud at the press conference. It's easy to criticize the comments as someone who wasn't up in front of the spotlight, but it probably didn't do much for the already shattered confidence of Letourneau for Sweeney to admit that he flat out sucked last season. While the Eagles had another great season in Hockey East, Letourneau spent most of the season on the fourth line and recorded just three assists in 36 games.
Letourneau wasn't the only player on Boston College to struggle, as three other forwards, Connor Joyce, Brady Berard, and Jake Sondreal, played nearly every game and failed to record over six points. However, none of those players were first-round picks the previous season, and none of them are property of an NHL team. The following closest NHL property players were Will Skahan and Aidan Hreschuk with seven and nine points, respectively.
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