Johnny Boychuk wears the Bruins’ black and gold, but under that spoked-B sweater, the Boston defenseman is probably sporting a ton of black and blue.
Boychuk has had a rough go of it at times this season, as he continues to get in the way of pucks over the course of the shortened season, and it hasn’t stopped into the postseason. That went to another level in Game 4 when Boychuk blocked seven shots in the Bruins’ overtime win over the Toronto Maple Leafs. Boychuk also showed an incredible effort in the second period where he was clearly hurting but blocked shots and went sliding across the ice to help the B’s clear the zone.
“When you get a shot on the ankle sometimes you can’t put any pressure on it,” Boychuk said Thursday. “They had control of the puck, they’re not gonna blow it. You try to just block anything and do anything. You’re not really doing any good if you’re lying down.”
There was some speculation about Boychuk’s health when the Bruins recalled defenseman Matt Bartkowski from Providence on Thursday night. However, Boychuk says he’s good to go. He said on 98.5 The Sports Hub on Friday morning that he’d be ready for Game 5, and it was revealed later that it was Wade Redden who would be out of the lineup on Friday night.
See the shift below.
