The Bruins are shaking up their lineup again Monday night, and this time the changes come with a little more intrigue.
Boston hosts the Ottawa Senators at TD Garden after a 4-1 loss to the Minnesota Wild, a game that capped the road back-to-back and left the Bruins looking for a reset. The biggest move came Sunday afternoon when the team waived Mikey Eyssimont, a veteran depth forward, in order to activate Matthew Poitras from injured reserve and get him back on the NHL roster.
Now Poitras is set to jump right in.
He’s expected to center the fourth line against Ottawa, with Sean Kuraly coming out. Kuraly hasn’t been poor, but Boston clearly wants to give Poitras a chance and reward him for earning his way back into the mix.
There’s another fresh face on the blue line, too. Rookie defenseman Frederic Brunet appears poised to make his NHL debut, replacing Jonathan Aspirot after Aspirot struggled in his first three games and had a particularly rough stretch in Winnipeg and Minnesota.
Belle Fraser of the Bruins reported that Brunet was in at morning skate, and the projected lineup reflects those changes.
Jeremy Swayman gets the start in net, as expected, with Michael DiPietro backing him up. The Senators will be missing Jake Sanderson, their star defenseman, after he was injured in Saturday’s win over the Maple Leafs.
Projected Bruins lineup:
JJ Peterka - Elias Lindholm - David Pastrnak
Casey Mittelstadt - Pavel Zacha - Morgan Geekie
James Hagens - Fraser Minten - Marat Khusnutdinov
Tanner Jeannot - Matthew Poitras - Mark Kastelic
Defense:
Hampus Lindholm - Will Borgen
Nikita Zadorov - Connor Clifton
Frederic Brunet - Mason Lohrei
Starting goalie: Jeremy Swayman
Backup goalie: Michael DiPietro
Extras: Sean Kuraly, Jonathan Aspirot, Charlie McAvoy (SUSPENDED)
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For Bruins fans, the twist is that two familiar bottom-six names have surfaced as possible fits in the discussion: Mark Kastelic and Michael Eyssimont. Montreals Kirby Dach is also in the mix, though he would present a tougher path because of his cap hit and injury history, and for now the Oilers are still weighing whether a move is worth making at all. [Read more 🡒]
Bruins Give Two Young Players A Real Chance To Stick
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Poitras missed time after getting hurt late in camp, then worked his way back into the mix as Boston reset its lineup. Brunet, meanwhile, is getting another NHL look after spending multiple seasons in the AHL, and both players have talked about understanding what is expected of them if they want to stay. For the Bruins, it is less about one game than what these two can show in it, and whether their first step back can turn into something more permanent. [Read more 🡒]