Be sure to 'like' Hockeybuzz on Facebook!
The Boston Bruins will begin the year without two of their go-to defensemen, as both
Adam McQuaid (considered day-to-day with an undisclosed injury) and
Kevan Miller, who sustained an unspecified injury in the preseason finale, will begin the year on the injured reserve.
B’s general manager
Don Sweeney alluded to the idea that McQuaid, who has missed almost a week of practice now, is dealing with a short-term ailment, while Miller may be out long term.
“Miller will likely be out for an extended period of time,” Sweeney confirmed at Warrior Ice Arena for the club’s annual media day on Tuesday. “But we’re waiting for the last medical report on him.”
With McQuaid and Miller out of commission, the Bruins will carry both first-year pros
Brandon Carlo and the 23-year-old
Robbie O’Gara on their opening night roster.
Carlo has skated with
Zdeno Chara and
John-Michael Liles at different points throughout the preseason, and seems like an easy fit into the B’s opening night plans, while O’Gara could be slotted in somewhere on the Bruins’ second or third pairing with a veteran like Liles or Krug.
The Bruins also lost
Seth Griffith on a waiver claim made by the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Passed on the depth chart by players like
Danton Heinen,
David Pastrnak and more, the 5-foot-9 Griffith struggled to find time to impress in a crowded Boston training camp, and finished the preseason with one goal and two points in four games played.
In Toronto, Griffith, who spent his entire junior career with the London Knights, including a Memorial Cup run in 2012, will be reunited with current Leafs assistant general manager Mark Hunter, a former 12-year front office presence of all sorts with the Knights (and during Griffith’s tenure in London).
Drafted by the Bruins in the fifth round in 2012, the Wallaceburg, Ont. native finished with the second-most points in the AHL last season (77), and recorded a whopping 56 goals and 158 points in 165 games with the Providence Bruins, along with six goals and 11 points in 34 NHL games.
Ty Anderson has been covering the National Hockey League for HockeyBuzz.com since 2010, has been a member of the Pro Hockey Writers Association's Boston Chapter since 2013, and can also be read in the New England Hockey Journal magazine. Contact him on Twitter or send him an email at Ty.AndersonHB[at]gmail.com.
Boston Bruins Blogger •Bruins Feature Columnist • 
Join the Discussion:
»