BOSTON — The Bruins and Calgary Flames will meet Thursday night at TD Garden with key players out of their lineups.
The Flames are without No. 1 defenseman and captain Mark Giordano, who will miss the rest of the season with a torn biceps. Giordano was the top Norris Trophy candidate and also deserved consideration for the Hart Trophy. His absence will force T.J. Brodie (Calgary’s other top-pairing defenseman) and veteran Dennis Wideman to raise their game on the team’s blue line.
The Bruins still are without top-six center David Krejci, although young center Ryan Spooner has played well in his spot alongside wingers Milan Lucic and David Pastrnak. Newly-acquired right winger Brett Connolly suffered a right index finger injury during Wednesday’s practice and will miss the next six weeks after undergoing surgery.
The Bruins held an optional skate Thursday morning and there weren’t any major changes to their lines or pairings. Veteran forward Max Talbot will make his debut for the Bruins after being acquired at Monday’s NHL trade deadline. He likely will start on the fourth line as a winger but also could move to center and take faceoffs.
Flames defenseman David Schlemko will make his debut for the team Thursday night and forward Brandon Bollig will return to the lineup, per head coach Bob Hartley.
Here’s the projected lineups for both teams:
BOSTON BRUINS (31-22-9, fourth in Atlantic)
Brad Marchand–Patrice Bergeron–Reilly Smith
Milan Lucic–Ryan Spooner–David Pastrnak
Daniel Paille–Carl Soderberg–Loui Eriksson
Maxime Talbot–Chris Kelly–Brian Ferlin
Zdeno Chara–Dougie Hamilton
Matt Bartkowski–Dennis Seidenberg
Torey Krug–Adam McQuaid
Tuukka Rask
CALGARY FLAMES (34-25-4, third in Pacific Division)
Mason Raymond–Sean Monahan–Jiri Hudler
Johnny Gaudreau–Joe Colborne–Josh Jooris
Lance Bouma–Mikael Backlund–David Jones
Michael Ferland–Drew Shore–Brandon Bollig
Kris Russell–Dennis Wideman
TJ Brodie–Deryk Engelland
Raphael Diaz–David Schlemko
Karri Ramo
Thumbnail photo via Sergei Belski/USA TODAY Sports Images
