BOSTON — The Bruins made what general manager Don Sweeney termed a “significant” round of roster cuts Thursday, though he declined to specify exactly which players were shown the door.
Update (6:33 p.m. ET): The Bruins announced they have assigned Anton Blidh, Chris Breen, Brandon DeFazio, Brian Ferlin, Alex Khokhlachev and Ben Sexton to the Providence Bruins. They also put Tommy Cross on waivers with the intent to send down to Providence.
“We made a couple other transactions before practice,” Sweeney said during the Bruins’ annual media day. “And we’ll also make a couple (more). We have not spoken to a couple other players right here after practice, as well. So, yeah. We’ve cut down the roster significantly again here (Thursday).”
Forwards Alexander Khokhlachev and Anton Blidh did not participate in Thursday’s practice, nor did Ben Sexton, Chris Breen and Brandon DeFazio, all three of whom were recalled from Providence ahead of Wednesday’s preseason game.
Khokhlachev and Blidh had been two of several skaters competing for spots on Boston’s fourth line.
Sweeney also addressed the Bruins’ backup goalie situation, saying the team has yet to decide whether to keep Jeremy Smith or Jonas Gustavsson to back up starter Tuukka Rask.
“We’re going to go through the rest of the other game (Friday), and we’re going to sit down as a group,” the GM said. “(Goalie coach) Bob Essensa has been working hard in terms of analyzing from his side of it, as well as we as a staff. I’m sure (head coach Claude Julien) will weigh in where we think it fits in. It’s been a heck of a competition throughout camp.”
Gustavsson, a 30-year-old veteran in camp on a professional tryout offer, left the team last week to attend the birth of his daughter. He missed his second scheduled appearance but returned in time to start Wednesday. He finished with 24 saves in a 3-2 loss to the New York Rangers.
“Obviously, Gus was thrown a curveball with his first child being born to he and his wife,” Sweeney said. “He went off for a couple days, came back and was able to play (Wednesday) night. So, we have a big decision to make, but we feel confident in being able to make that moving forward.”
Rask is scheduled to start Friday’s preseason finale.
A few leftover nuggets from media day:
— Have plans yet for Thanksgiving weekend? The Hayes family does.
Jimmy Hayes’ Bruins will host Kevin Hayes’ New York Rangers in a Black Friday matinee at TD Garden — just a few short miles from the brothers’ childhood home in Dorchester. It’ll be the first meeting of the season between Jimmy and his little bro, and as you might imagine, ticket requests have been prevalent.
“That’s the game everyone’s talking about,” the elder Hayes said. “… If you need tickets, call my dad.”
— Bruins winger Zac Rinaldo committed his first penalty of the preseason Wednesday night — a goalie interference call against Henrik Lundqvist — and quickly was mobbed by several Rangers players. That type of reaction was nothing new for Rinaldo, whose aggressive style of play often draws the ire of opponents.
“Especially the last two games in Washington, they were all over me,” he said. “But you know what? That’s my job. That’s my job to take the attention away from guys like (Brad Marchand), guys like (Patrice Bergeron) and (David Krejci). Take the pressure off those guys, and put it on to me so they can do what they need to do for them to be great.
“I’ll take all that. I’ll take all the pressure from the other team, as long as my other teammates are full force and ready to go and are mentally comfortable during the game, that they don’t have to worry about other guys being all over them and hitting them and stuff like that and out to get those guys. That’s what I’m here to do.”
Rinaldo also drew a penalty later in the game — his fifth drawn call of the preseason.
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Thumbnail photo via Mark L. Baer/USA TODAY Sports Images
