When it comes to the Stanley Cup Playoffs, one thing is for sure: players put aside injuries as best as they can to play. When a player is ruled out, you figure it has to be something serious, and that appears to be the case for both the Boston Bruins and Buffalo Sabres.
In Sunday's 6-1 Game 4 loss to Buffalo, Boston lost forward Viktor Arvidsson to an upper-body injury. He missed practice on Monday and did not charter to Western New York with his teammates for Game 5 on Tuesday night. He was ruled out before the game by head coach Marco Sturm. On Wednesday, one day after the Black and Gold kept their season alive with an overtime win, Sturm didn't sound like someone who was expecting him back for Game 6.
“It’s going to be hard. We’ll see where he’s at tomorrow. He’s definitely day-to-day, but it’s going to be hard,” said Sturm. “He always wants to play. He’s very frustrated. He wants to be a big part of it.”
It remains to be seen who slots into the Game 6 lineup, but it wouldn't be surprising if Mikey Eyssimont and Alex Steeves drew back in.
As for the Sabres, head coach Lindy Ruff gave an update on Noah Ostlund on Wednesday, and it appears they'll be without him moving forward after a lower-body injury. In three games in the series, he had a goal and an assist. It appears that Josh Norris is ready to return to the lineup for Buffalo.
David Pastrank continues to impress Marco Sturm
When your season is on teh line, you need your best players to step up. That's what David Pastrnak did in overtime of Game 5 on Tuesday night at the KeyBank Center. He stepped up to keep his team's season alive for at least one more game.
During a change nearly halfway through the extra session, Pastrank took a stretch pass from defenseman Hampus Lindholm just behind the Buffalo defense. He fended off Mattis Samuelson and quickly made a move to sneak the puck past Alex Lyon for the game-winning goal. Sturm was still surprised by his superstar's move.
I’m telling you this: there’s only a few players I think who could do that,'' said Sturm. "What I mean by that is it’s not the finish, but the way he doesn’t go offside. That’s not the first time.”
“This year there was, I don’t know how many times it was the same thing, and somehow he always gets it done. And what a nice finish for him, I’m just pretty happy because, you know, this guy puts a lot of pressure on himself, and he wants to be the difference. And today it was.”
More Bruins & NHL News
- The Ottawa Senators were swept in the first round by the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday. They have held their end-of-the-season media availability, and on Wednesday, captain Brady Tkachuk spoke. He has been the subject of trade rumors, and he did his best to put those to rest. "I have been fully committed to this team, to this city, and it's becoming a distraction, frustrating to deal with,'' he said. Count me as someone who doesn't believe that he'll be moved this offseason.
- While Boston will be hosting the Sabres for Game 6 on Friday night, the Providence Bruins will begin their quest for the Calder Cup championship that same night against the Springfield Thunderbirds in the American Hockey League (AHL) playoffs. Game 1 of the best-of-five series is set to begin at 7:05 p.m.
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