Bruce Cassidy is typically forthcoming when it comes to lineup decisions, so you kind of have to take the Boston Bruins head coach at his word when it comes to his defensive lineup for Thursday night.
Cassidy and the Bruins must decide which rested defenseman will draw into the lineup for Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals against the Carolina Hurricanes. B’s blueliner Charlie McAvoy is out for the opener after being suspended one game for his hit in the Bruins’ series-deciding win against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Monday night.
The final decision — which Cassidy said will be revealed the morning of Game 1 — will come down to Steven Kampfer and John Moore. Boston practiced Wednesday, and Kampfer took line rushes with Matt Grzelcyk, a potential indication he might be the one who gets the call.
“Certainly if Kampfer goes in, it’s three righties (and) three lefties,” Cassidy explained as inserting the right-handed Kampfer would make up for the loss of McAvoy, a right shot himself.
But Kampfer’s handedness alone doesn’t seem like it will be the No. 1 priority, as Cassidy mentioned there might be plenty of shuffling going on Thursday night.
“Who goes up with (Zdeno Chara), that might be our next thought,” Cassidy offered. “We like Krug and Carlo (together). Depending on how they set their lines, Z and Carlo could be a good matchup on certain lines. Z and (Grzelcyk) played together, that would leave two lefties on the bottom. It might even be (Connor Clifton) get some shifts with Z. I think you’re gonna see some different combinations (Thursday) depending on the circumstances.”
While the Hurricanes might not offer much in the way of recognizable star power, their offense has been clicking for the better part of four months now. Only the Tampa Bay Lightning scored more regular-season goals between Jan. 1 and the end of the regular season, a 44-game stretch during which the Canes went 30-12-2 with only Tampa Bay and the St. Louis Blues besting their 62 points in that run. Luckily for the Bruins, Game 1 is at home. The Canes have scored five goals in each of their last three home games while scoring just three total goals in their last three road games.
Here are the Bruins’ lines and defensive pairings from Wednesday’s practice.
Brad Marchand — Patrice Bergeron — David Pastrnak
Jake DeBrusk — David Krejci — David Backes
Marcus Johansson — Charlie Coyle — Danton Heinen
Joakim Nordstrom — Sean Kuraly — Chris Wagner
Zdeno Chara — Connor Clifton
Torey Krug — Brandon Carlo
Matt Grzelcyk — Steven Kampfer
