The Bruins made a roster move Sunday afternoon that points straight to the squeeze they’re living under right now: Mikey Eyssimont was placed on waivers.
Eyssimont, 30, had made Boston’s roster out of camp, but he hasn’t appeared in any of the team’s first three games of the season. The setup around him has been tight from the start, with the Bruins carrying eight defensemen because Charlie McAvoy is serving a six-game suspension and the club needs an extra blueliner available in case of injury.
That numbers crunch also helped shape the forward battle in camp. Matthew Poitras opened camp on fire and seemed to have the last forward spot locked up, but a minor injury midway through camp changed that picture. Poitras began the season on injured reserve, which opened the door for Eyssimont to grab the spot.
For now, Boston is expected to get through three more games - Monday, Thursday and Saturday - before heading to California. If Eyssimont clears waivers, the Bruins could bring him back then, once McAvoy is eligible to be activated.
That would allow Boston to settle back into a more standard 23-man roster for the 10-day, four-game road trip: 14 forwards, 7 defensemen and 2 goalies.
There is still a real chance another team could take a shot on Eyssimont. He’s viewed as a strong depth forward, one who can play across the bottom six and bring solid penalty-killing value.
Eyssimont is in the final year of his contract and carries a cap hit of $1.45 million.
In Other News...
Bruins First Loss Exposed An Early Problem They Can't Keep Feeding
After opening the season with a spirited overtime win in Winnipeg, the Bruins ran into a much less forgiving night in their home opener against Minnesota. Boston had the kind of early lead it wanted, but the game quickly shifted once the second period got messy, with the Wild taking advantage of the Bruins discipline issues and turning a competitive start into a far tougher ask.
The larger concern for Boston is that the problems were not limited to the scoreboard. Shot selection and offensive execution were off, and in a back-to-back stretch like this, those details can decide whether a team grinds out points or hands them away. The Bruins have already shown they can win on energy and resilience, but their first loss of the season also served as a reminder that they cannot keep feeding opponents easy chances. [Read more 🡒]
Bruins Hot Start Faces Its First Real Test In Net
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Jeremy Swayman will get the night off after starting Fridays overtime win, and the rest of the lineup is expected to stay intact. For a team trying to keep momentum rolling, this is the kind of game that can say a lot about the Bruins goaltending picture without changing much else around it. [Read more 🡒]
Bruins First Loss Exposed An Early Problem They Couldnt Overcome
The Bruins first loss of the season arrived on the second night of a back-to-back, and it came with a familiar warning sign attached. Boston held up well at even strength against Minnesota, but special teams tilted the game the wrong way, turning a competitive night into a 3-1 defeat.
Michael DiPietro made his first start for Boston and gave the team a chance with 26 saves, but the Bruins could not find a way to cash in when the game tilted toward special teams play. Penalties became the difference, and for a team trying to establish its early-season identity, the margin for error quickly disappeared. [Read more 🡒]