There wasn't much clarity provided to the battle for the final job on the Boston blue line in Monday's 2-1 win over Montreal, but the Bruins have to at least be feeling a little more comfortable about their options at the position.
The Bruins' top six is pretty well set with Zdeno Chara, Dennis Seidenberg, Andrew Ference, Johnny Boychuk and Adam McQuaid all back from last year's Stanley Cup-winning lineup and Joe Corvo added from Carolina. But the seventh defense spot is up for grabs and the competition for that job may be the most intense battle in camp this preseason, with five players still in camp vying for it.
While Colby Cohen, David Warsofsky and Zach McKelvie remain in the mix, it's looking like a showdown between Steven Kampfer and Matt Bartkowski for that spot, and both players bolstered their cases with solid showings Monday at the Bell Centre.
Cohen also played on Monday and was active jumping into the play. He's got an NHL future, but he may have to wait a bit longer with Kampfer and Bartkowski still appearing to have the inside track on the final spot on the defense.
"On the back end, Bartkowski, Cohen and Kampfer, they're all trying to earn a spot here and trying to show what they can do," Bruins coach Claude Julien said. "There were some good things we saw from individuals tonight."
Bartkowski had been the more impressive of the pair earlier in camp, while Kampfer had struggled at times. But Kampfer, who played 38 games with the big club last year, settled down on Monday and made up some ground with a strong performance.
Kampfer finished a plus-1 with three shots and an assist in 20:31. He set up the winning goal with 6:45 to play. As a Bruins power play was expiring, Kampfer led a rush down the right side, gained the zone and dished the puck to Max Sauve in front. Sauve then slipped a backhand pass over to Chris Clark at the left post for the score.
Bartkowski didn't cede much ground in the battle, though. He had an assist and three shots as well, though he was a minus-1 in 22:03. Bartkowski continues to be more of a physical presence than Kampfer, but he also contributed to the offense, as he helped set up Boston's first goal.
Bartkowski pinched in to the right faceoff circle and fired in a shot on goal. Montreal netminder Carey Price made the initial save, but after a scramble in front, Tyler Seguin banged home the rebound for a power-play tally to tie the game at 1-1.
Factor in a strong showing by Warsofsky in Sunday's 7-3 win over the Habs in Halifax, and it won't be an easy decision for Julien and Co. to pick that final defenseman. Fortunately, all five players battling for that spot are eligible to play in the AHL, so even if they are sent down now, they'll be available to be called up from Providence as needed.
"It's not easy," Julien said of the decision on defense. "Everybody seems to bring a different element to the game. I thought Warsofsky played really well [Sunday] night, moved the puck well and made some great plays.
"Bartkowski is starting to take advantage of his size and his strength," Julien continued. "He's a good skater and he protects the puck well. He's got to make the easy plays. Sometimes he complicates things and tries to make the tougher play. That's where he's got to get better. Kampfer continues to do well as far as skating the puck up when he's got an opportunity. So we've got some decent players back there that at worst, whether they stay or not, we'll certainly feel comfortable about our depth."
All the Bruins were rewarded with a day off on Tuesday and will get back into action at home when they host Ottawa at the Garden on Thursday.
