Jim Montgomery Reveals Why Bruins Forward Wasn’t In Game 1 Lineup

The Bruins appeared to be heading in the right direction with their injury situation coming off their first-round Stanley Cup playoff series win, but Boston dealt with a minor setback heading into Game 1 of Round 2.

Jesper Boqvist was not in the Black and Gold’s lineup for Monday night’s road win over the Florida Panthers. Boqvist, who played in all seven games against the Toronto Maple Leafs, was replaced on the Bruins’ fourth line by Patrick Brown. Brown was recalled from Providence on an emergency basis Sunday and logged only 8:27 of ice time in the series opener at Amerant Bank Arena.

One could have assumed Boqvist’s Game 1 absence wasn’t performance-based, but Jim Montgomery confirmed as much after morning skate in Florida on Wednesday. The Bruins head coach also revealed the 25-year-old will be in the lineup for Game 2.

“Yeah, it was health,” Montgomery told reporters of Boqvist’s removal from the lineup, per a team-provided video. “He was nursing some things. He’s good to go tonight.”

Boqvist is expected to center the Bruins’ fourth line Wednesday night flanked by John Beecher and Pat Maroon. Boston and Florida will drop the puck at 7:30 p.m. ET, but you can catch an hour of pregame coverage on NESN+ beginning at 6:30 p.m.