As injuries mounted last week, the Boston Bruins claimed Jarred Tinordi off waivers to shore up the blueline. The move was not meet with much excitement as Tinordi was expected to serve as a depth piece. In the Bruins 5-1 win on Friday night over the Washington Capitals, however, he proved his value after Brandon Carlo was forced out of the game due to a high hit to the head by Tom Wilson.
Following the hit, Tinordi wasted little time standing up for his teammate. Less than ten minutes into the second period, he dropped the gloves with Wilson before the Bruins offense scored three goals in the period. Tinordi has yet to record a point with Boston, but he has shown that he won’t let opponents push around his teammates.
Before joining the Bruins, Tinordi was known for his physical style of play. In 90 career games, he only has one goal and ten assists. In that span, however, he has blocked 111 shots and landed 185 hits. He has also spent a good amount of time in the penalty box as he has 121 career penalty minutes.
So far in Tinordi’s NHL career, he already played for four different teams. On a Friday night, however, he delivered what is likely to be one of the Bruins’ most memorable moments of the season. Although his addition was not seen as a major move, he is now well known among Bruins fans. After being claimed by Boston, the former first-round pick drove 17 hours from Nashville to Boston, and the trip has been worth it so far.
While it is uncertain when Brandon Carlo will return, Tinordi could see more playing time over the next few weeks. Boston will not expect him to replicate Carlo’s production but provide more of what he did on Friday night. The Bruins will need his physical presence on the blueline as they look to move up in the standings.
As Tinordi continues to get settled in Boston, he will be looking to make a name for himself. The Bruins are the second team he has played with this season and look poised for a playoff run. Regardless of how much playing time Tinordi gets, he has already endeared himself to the Bruins faithful in his first two games.