BOSTON — Though the night ended with a loss, the Boston Bruins got an important addition back into the lineup Friday.
The B’s saw the return of bottom-six forward Sean Kuraly in their 2-1 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Playoff first-round series. The 26-year-old had been out of the lineup with a hand fracture suffered March 21.
Bruins head coach Bruce Cassidy shuffled the lines quite a bit in the loss — particularly in the bottom six. The bench was shortened to pretty much just three lines, with Kuraly among those cycling in with Danton Heinen and Charlie Coyle on the third unit.
Considering how many guys skated on the third line, it was telling that Kuraly logged 14:22 time on ice, while his original linemates (Noel Acciari, 9:55, and Chris Wagner, 9:20), as well as David Backes (4:36) ended up playing significantly less time than him. Put simply, it means Cassidy trusts Kuraly, even after an extended absence.
Following the game, Kuraly indicated that he felt fine physically.
“I felt alright,” Kuraly said. “Obviously, you want to contribute more when you lose and be better when you lose. That’ll be the plan for next game. Definitely there was some time off there, and I’d like to be better.”
It’s tough going from not playing in a game situation to getting thrown into a must-win postseason contest against an Original Six rival. Still, he wasn’t using the time away as an excuse.
“I think it’s a high pace, it’s a lot,” Kuraly said. “As a player it is your job to be ready. That will be the focus going forward.”
It seems possible that there will be more line shuffling ahead of a must-win Game 6 — especially with Joakim Nordstrom being a healthy scratch in Game 5. But it seems Kuraly’s earned enough trust to know he won’t see himself relegated to being a healthy scratch.
