Cassidy to use forward-thinking
OTTAWA — In theory, Bruins interim coach Bruce Cassidy gave the Ryan
Spooner-Frank Vatrano forward combination a boost on Wednesday night by dropping Drew Stafford down to their line. It not only reunited a trio that worked fairly well in the first few weeks of Cassidy’s tenure, but it also put Stafford back on his natural right wing.
The desired results were not there in Game 4. Not only did the unit not produce offensively, but it was on the ice for the only goal of the game, Bobby Ryan’s third-period tally. The line ended up playing less than 10 minutes in the 1-0 loss.
But Spooner thought there was some promise early on with the trio. Whether it was enough for Cassidy to keep the line together for tonight’s Game 5 remains to be seen. The B’s did not practice yesterday before traveling here, so we won’t see the configuration until this morning’s skate.
“I think in the first period we had a couple of looks there. Same in the second period. Third period was kind of not really much going on there,” said Spooner. “We only played 10 minutes or something like that. But with that kind of ice, you’ve just got to go out there and just try to do something.”
All three players have contributed in this series. Spooner has a pair of assists. Vatrano had a big tying goal in Game 1, which came when he was on a line with Dominic Moore and Riley Nash. Stafford scored a goal when he was skating with Spooner and David Backes.
But they haven’t exactly been a going concern for the Senators, who have loaded up to stop the first two lines. The B’s could use some contribution from Spooner and his linemates tonight if they want to extend this series.
“We’ve just got out go out there and play,” said Spooner. “It’s the game of hockey. Sometimes there are stretches where things don’t really go as you’d planned. When that happens you’ve just got to go out there and play and get to the front of the net. When that happens, hopefully you get a bounce.”
There is some question as to whether Vatrano will be available for Game 5. He was seen wearing a walking boot after Game 4, but he was not wearing it when spotted yesterday. It’s not clear what the origin of any potential injury would have been.
“He’s OK and we’ll see how he is. … He may test it. But he’ll be a decision (this) morning. We’ll see how he is and go from there,” said Cassidy. If Vatrano can’t go, Matt
Beleskey would probably be the next man up, though center Sean Kuraly is another option.
McAvoy turns heads
None of the Bruins’ three injured defensemen — Torey Krug, Brandon Carlo and Adam McQuaid — is expected to play tonight. While the Bruins have suffered from their absence on the blue line, rookie Charlie
McAvoy is earning kudos from all over, including the opposition.
“He’s incredible,” said Ryan. “Nobody knows him, right, so you get the sense that, man, they are throwing him into the fire here. Personally, we hoped that the moment was too big for him. You hoped that he’d struggle but, God, he’s poised and he makes plays veteran defensemen make. He is able to move the puck up the ice. He shoots when he’s supposed to shoot and he shoots well through traffic and he’s good defensively. He is going to be a really good player for a really long time.”
Selke smooth
Patrice Bergeron was named a finalist Wednesday for the Selke Trophy for the sixth consecutive season and will be going for his fourth win. Cassidy knew of him as a great defensive player, of course, but didn’t fully appreciate him until he came to the Boston staff this year.
“You see the obvious — the faceoffs, the penalty kill, the matchups. You don’t have a true appreciation of how good a stick he has and how good his angles are on closing on people until you see it every day against good players,” said Cassidy. “He just has an uncanny ability to be on the right side of the puck and have his stick in passing lanes, close off breaks, things you’re constantly trying to teach the younger guys how to do. And this guy just gets it, like that.”