Berkshire Bank Hockey Night In New England: Projected Bruins-Flames Lines, Pairings

by

Feb 25, 2020

BOSTON — Danton Heinen is out, Nick Ritchie is in.

With the NHL trade deadline now passed, the Boston Bruins will host the Calgary Flames on Tuesday at TD Garden. This matchup comes just four days after the Bruins beat the Flames in Calgary in a wildly entertaining game.

With Heinen now an Anaheim Duck and Ritchie a Bruin, Ritchie is going to take over on the third line. Both he and Anders Bjork are left shots, so Bjork will start on the right side with Ritchie on the left and Charlie Coyle between them.

As a result, Karson Kuhlman bumps back up to the second line, rejoining Jake DeBrusk and David Krejci. Presumably, that second line right wing spot will be Ondrej Kase’s when he makes his Bruins debut, which won’t be until Thursday at the earliest.

Bruins head coach Bruce Cassidy continues tinkering with the fourth line in an effort to get them going. Anton Blidh will be a healthy scratch, with Par Lindholm slotting into the lineup as the unit’s pivot, meaning Sean Kuraly pushes to the left wing.

Boston will keep the same blue line, so Jeremy Lauzon stays in over John Moore.

As for the Flames, they might welcome back reigning Norris Trophy winner Mark Giordano, who has not played since Feb. 4 due to a hamstring injury. He’s considered a game-time decision.

Calgary’s two trade deadline acquisitions, Derek Forbort (from the Los Angeles Kings) and Erik Gustafsson (from the Chicago Blackhawks), will make up the third defensive pairing.

Tuukka Rask will be in net for the Bruins, while David Rittich is expected to go for Calgary.

Here are the projected lineups for both teams:

BOSTON BRUINS (39-12-12)
Brad Marchand–Patrice Bergeron–David Pastrnak
Jake DeBrusk–David Krejci–Karson Kuhlman
Nick Ritchie–Charlie Coyle–Anders Bjork
Sean Kuraly–Par Lindholm–Chris Wagner

Zdeno Chara–Charlie McAvoy
Torey Krug–Brandon Carlo
Matt Grzelcyk–Jeremy Lauzon

Tuukka Rask

CALGARY FLAMES (32-25-6)
Johnny Gaudreau–Sean Monahan–Elias Lindholm
Matthew Tkachuk–Mikael Backlund–Andrew Mangiapane
Milan Lucic–Derek Ryan–Dillon Dube
Sam Bennett–Mark Jankowski–Tobias Rieder

Mike Giordano–TJ Brodie
Noah Hanifin–Rasmus Andersson
Derek Forbort–Erik Gustafsson

David Rittich

Thumbnail photo via Gary A. Vasquez/USA TODAY Sports Images
Ohio State Buckeyes receiver K.J. Hill
Previous Article

Why Ohio State’s K.J. Hill Could Be Perfect Fit For Patriots In NFL Draft

Formula One driver Fernando Alonso
Next Article

Fernando Alonso To Compete In Indy 500, Seek Motorsports ‘Triple Crown’

Picked For You