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An 11-day road trip, which begins tonight in Vancouver, will be the final stretch for the Bruins to prove their group is strong enough to make the deep playoff run many now consider possible.
It would be a shock if this wasn’t on their mind.
But Bruins head coach Bruce Cassidy knows that the structure of his team -- with veteran leaders happily taking the B’s youthful contributors under their wing -- should help with that.
“I think the players are aware of it, but I think with the veteran guys in the room, they tend to talk to the younger guys about stuff that may or may not happen,… Cassidy said. “I’m not sure how much.…
While opting not to talk about specific needs for the Black and Gold between now and the trade deadline, noting that it would be ‘disrespectful’ to the current group, Cassidy did not hide from acknowledging the obvious pros and cons of their current roster construct come April.
“The core group has been there. They’ve won a Cup. It’s always a concern with the younger guys, how they’ll perform,… Cassidy admitted. “But again, I think there are pockets in our lineup where I think we can upgrade, but I don’t want to go through every position. If we add a player that’s better than what we have, we’ll get him in there and see how he fits and go from there.…
And this is a trip that will feature some last looks at potential targets, such as the Canucks’ Thomas Vanek and Edmonton’s Patrick Maroon, both of whom are expected to be moved at the deadline.
Tuukka Rask gets the call in the Boston net. The current plan calls for Rask to play tonight and Monday against Calgary. The timing of the schedule probably calls for Rask to start these games without significant wear-and-tear, as the B’s have been off since Tuesday’s win over Calgary.
The Bruins defeated the Canucks by a 6-3 final in their only prior head-to-head this season.
Loose pucks: Bruins defenseman Kevan Miller (upper-body) is still not ready to return to the lineup, but is considered a possibility for Monday against the Flames or Tuesday against the Oilers… Jordan Szwarz, recalled from Providence on an emergency basis on Friday, will join the Bruins as an insurance policy for this season-long road swing. Szwarz last played in an NHL game Nov. 26, and has three assists in 10 games for the B’s this season… Jake DeBrusk’s dad, Louie DeBrusk, will actually serve as a commentator for this game, and be found between the benches. Jake is excited for that, and even remarked that he may ask his dad for pointers at some point during the game.
Ty Anderson is the Boston Bruins beat writer for WEEI.com, and has been covering the National Hockey League for HockeyBuzz.com since 2010. He can be heard on the Saturday Skate program on 93.7 WEEI (Boston), and has been part of the Boston Chapter of the PHWA since 2013. Contact him on Twitter or send him an email at Ty.AndersonHB[at]gmail.com.