The Maple Leafs first meeting with the Boston Bruins on Saturday will be just a bit different, as the perennial Eastern Conference powerhouse will be without team captain Zdeno Chara. The All-Star defenseman suffered a knee injury in Thursday’s 3-2 loss to the New York Islanders at TD Garden in Boston.
Chara injured his knee checking Islanders star John Tavares midway through the first period and did not return to the game. After being examined by team doctors Friday morning, Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli indicated that the All-Star defenseman is expected to be out 4 to 6 weeks with a tear to the posterior cruciate ligament.
The behemoth blueliner has long been a nemesis to Toronto, going back to his days with the Ottawa Senators, but has been particularly effective with Boston in neutralizing Leafs forwards with his size and strength in front of the net. Boston head coach Claude Julien’s primary tactic in neutralizing former Bruin Phil Kessel has been to have Chara on the ice with him at all times. That option is not available to Julien on Saturday, which gives the Leafs an advantage, but does not guarantee a victory over their long time Atlantic Division rival.
Even before the injury, this year’s club did not resemble the big, bad Bruins that won a Stanley Cup in 2011 and eliminated the Leafs from the playoffs in 2013. Long time enforcer Shawn Thornton departed via free agency to the Florida Panthers over the summer, veteran winger Jarome Iginla signed a three-year deal in Colorado and pending UFA defenseman Johnny Boychuk was traded the Islanders for draft picks.
The absence of Boychuk in addition to Chara’s injury makes the Bruins blueline smaller, less experienced and more vulnerable. Veterans Dennis Seidenberg and Adam McQuaid, youngsters Torey Krug, Dougie Hamilton, Matt Bartkowski, Kevan Miller and prospect Joe Morrow(recalled from Providence on Friday)will have to divvy up Chara’s 25+ minutes of ice time, but Boston has been able to overcome significant injuries to beat Toronto in the past.
“He’s obviously a big part of their team.” Leafs forward James van Riemsdyk said of Chara following practice on Friday. “Usually when a big guy like that gets hurt or goes down, other guys are stepping up and raising their game, so we know they are going to play pretty air tight here tomorrow.”
Toronto faced a severely short-handed Boston squad last December, who were missing Thornton because of his suspension for punching Pittsburgh’s Brooks Orpik. They were also without Loui Eriksson, Chris Kelly, Boychuk, Seidenberg and McQuaid, started backup goalie Chad Johnson and lost Hamilton in the first period with an injury, but still ended up with a 5-2 victory over the Leafs.
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The Leafs skated Friday morning in preparation for the game on Saturday with little indication there will be any lineup changes. The coaching staff opted to go with 11 forwards and seven defensemen, which resulted in continual shuffling line combinations and defensive pairings, but it is possible that either Carter Ashton or Matt Frattin could be inserted to make up four complete forward lines.
"It's about finding wins, it's about finding chemistry and obviously we'd like to play four lines and have six defensemen, but we have to do what's best for the Toronto Maple Leafs." assistant Steve Spott said on Friday. "We understand the importance of our fourth line, we've got an abundance of skill and we've got an abundance of size down there, it's just a matter of getting it out every night."
Through the first six games, the fourth line unit comprised of Daniel Winnik, Brandon Kozun, Peter Holland and Matt Frattin went without a point and saw their ice time decrease from more than 10 minutes to between 4 to 5 minutes.
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The Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens and Ottawa Senators will stage a coordinated tribute prior to their games on Saturday to honor Warrant Officer Patrice Vincent and Cpl. Nathan Cirillo, who lost their lives this week in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu and Ottawa. The teams also want to show appreciation for the men and women whose selfless actions stopped the attackers and aided the victims.
"As we continue to reflect on the tragic circumstances surrounding the deaths of two [of] our country's soldiers on Canadian soil, we do so with heavy hearts" Senators owner Eugene Melnyk said in a statement on Friday. "But what doesn't break us, makes us stronger. Today our country stands more united than ever and so does the entire NHL family. We are very pleased to join forces with the Montreal Canadiens and the Toronto Maple Leafs in co-ordinating a unique and special tribute prior [to] our games on Saturday in honour and recognition of these two brave soldiers, their families and all members of our Canadian military."
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