Marco Sturm is making another round of lineup tweaks as the Bruins get set to face the Vegas Golden Knights on Monday night at TD Garden, and the biggest call is a familiar one: Matthew Poitras is going back in.
After sitting out Saturday’s 5-4 comeback win over the Chicago Blackhawks, Poitras will return as the fourth-line center between Tanner Jeannot and Mark Kastelic, according to Sturm, as relayed by Adam Pellerin of NESN. Jeremy Swayman will also be back in net after Michael DiPietro handled the crease in Chicago.
The more notable shakeup is on the back end. Frederic Brunet will miss a third straight game, with Jonathan Aspirot drawing in for him. That means Brunet, Sean Kuraly and Connor Clifton are all healthy scratches against Vegas.
From Marco Sturm:
- Poitras back in
-Aspirot stays in
-Kuraly, Clifton, Brunet are a healthy scratch
-Swayman in net vs Vegas #NHLBruins
- Adam Pellerin (@adampellerin) November 2, 2026
Brunet’s situation stands out because he had started the season well before his play began to slip a bit. Sitting him against the Blues didn’t come as a shock, and the extra night off against Chicago made some sense too. A third straight absence, though, starts to raise a different question about how long Boston wants to keep him out.
Aspirot and Clifton are not exactly viewed as major upgrades over Brunet, and the bigger concern is what extended time on the sideline does to a young defenseman trying to build on a strong start. Brunet is the kind of player who has to work through mistakes on the fly, much like Mason Lohrei did a couple of years ago, and more time out of the lineup could make it harder for him to regain that early confidence.
Outside of those changes, Boston’s lineup stays the same. The Bruins now turn to Vegas before heading back on the road Thursday night against the Pittsburgh Penguins.
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