The Boston Bruins currently have several key players out with injuries. This was seen in their last game against the Philadelphia Flyers at Lake Tahoe as Jack Studnicka was playing third line center and defensemen John Moore and Urho Vaakanainen were both in the lineup.
The B’s are currently without forwards Ondrej Kase and David Krejci, and defensemen Matt Grzelcyk, Jeremy Lauzon, and Jakub Zboril (also known as the entire left side of their defense).
Kase has been out since the second game of the season with a lower-body injury, while Krejci has missed just one game so far with a lower-body injury.
Grzelcyk has now been out for about two weeks with a lower-body injury and has only played six games this season because of different injuries. Zboril has missed the last two games with an upper-body injury, while Lauzon was just injured in the last game during his first shift with an upper-body injury.
Boston Bruins’ defensemen Matt Grzelcyk and Jakub Zboril are trending in the right direction.
Today before practice, Grizz skated on his own. While he didn’t practice with the team in any capacity, it’s still a good sign that he’s back on the ice and skating.
Zboril also practiced in some capacity today. Unlike Grzelcyk, he was able to participate with the team in a non-contact sweater. Head coach Bruce Cassidy commented on this and said if Zboril feels good tomorrow morning he’ll be able to practice with the team in full capacity.
Zboril’s news is extremely promising and great for the Black and Gold. While Moore and Vaakanainen played very well against Philly, you just cannot trust them to perform at this level night in and night out.
While these two practiced in some form, the others didn’t. This isn’t great news as Lauzon has been on the top defensive pair alongside Charlie McAvoy and Krejci is the team’s second line center.
However, I’m less concerned with Krejci missing extended time as Charlie Coyle showed he can handle second line duties and Studnicka looked fine in his third line center role.
But with Lauzon out, I’m not sure who fills his spot next to McAvoy. I don’t think Grzelcyk and Zboril play the right style to compliment McAvoy, so maybe Connor Clifton is the answer.
Overall, the Bruins got some good news and some not so good news today at practice. Hopefully Zboril is ready for the next game so either Moore or Vaakanainen can be taken out of the lineup and I don’t trust either of them.