BOSTON — The Bruins will look to win two straight on home ice for the first time this season Tuesday as they host the San Jose Sharks at TD Garden.
Boston, 3-1 winners over the Detroit Red Wings on Saturday, will have a full stable of defensemen available for its matchup with San Jose after coach Claude Julien deemed Colin Miller (lower body injury) healthy enough to play.
“We’ve got all eight D’s available,” Julien said after Tuesday’s morning skate.
The morning session was optional, however, meaning the exact makeup of the Bruins’ defensive corps will not be known until shortly before puck drop. Zdeno Chara, Dennis Seidenberg, Torey Krug and Adam McQuaid are blue-line locks, while the final two spots will be filled by some combination of Colin Miller, Kevan Miller, Zach Trotman and Joe Morrow.
“When you have eight D’s, there’s going to be guys that are going to be going in and out throughout the year,” Julien said. “So, we shouldn’t make too much of a deal of who’s in and who’s out, more than they’re all going to play at some point.”
On the Sharks’ side, the game will serve as a homecoming of sorts for both center Joe Thornton, who spent his first six-plus NHL seasons with the Bruins, and winger Matt Nieto, who played his college hockey at Boston University.
Here are Tuesday’s projected lines and pairings:
BOSTON BRUINS (8-7-1)
Matt Beleskey — Patrice Bergeron — Brett Connolly
Frank Vatrano — David Krejci — Loui Eriksson
Brad Marchand — Ryan Spooner — Jimmy Hayes
Zac Rinaldo — Joonas Kemppainen — Tyler Randell
Zdeno Chara — Zach Trotman
Dennis Seidenberg — Kevan Miller
Torey Krug — Adam McQuaid
Tuukka Rask
SAN JOSE SHARKS (9-8-1)
Melker Karlsson — Joe Thornton — Joe Pavelski
Matt Nieto — Patrick Marleau — Joel Ward
Joonas Donskoi — Tomas Hertl — Tommy Wingels
Micheal Haley — Chris Tierney — Mike Brown
Marc-Edouard Vlasic — Justin Braun
Paul Martin — Brent Burns
Mirco Mueller — Brenden Dillon
Martin Jones
Thumbnail photo via Winslow Townson/USA TODAY Sports Images
