No Nash, so more ‘Crash’
Acciari replaces Riley on line
Don Sweeney did his best to cross as many t’s and dot as many i’s as he could at the trade deadline. The Bruins general manager picked up blue-line depth with Nick Holden, obtained an impact forward in Rick Nash and added depth up front with Tommy Wingels (trade), Brian Gionta (free agent signing) and Ryan Donato (col- lege signee).
But there are 20 spots in the lineup every night and you can’t have a perfect, NHL-ready replacement for every one of them. And, wouldn’t you know it, the B’s are trying to replace one of their most durable, useful and versatile players for Game 1 tonight against the Maple Leafs.
Riley Nash, who took a Torey Krug shot off the ear in the B’s win over Florida on March 31, has been ruled out for the opener and Noel Acciari will be the thirdline center between Danton Heinen and David Backes. The former Friar will no doubt give it everything he’s got — that’s his DNA — but the loss of this Nash thins out the B’s bottom six. Few may have seen this season coming from Nash — he has been vital to the Bruins this year with his 5-on-5 play, penalty killing and some bang-up work as Patrice Bergeron’s replacement when the No. 1 pivot was out with a broken foot.
One of the ripple effects of Nash being out is that Acciari comes off the so-called fourth line with center Sean Kuraly and left winger Tim Schaller, which had been effective enough for Cassidy to routinely play it against other teams’ top lines. Wingels will step in for Acciari on that line.
While mental fatigue has been labeled the main culprit for the Bruins’ 1-4 finish, it’s no coincidence that those last five unimpressive performances (the one win was a white-knuckler over a checked-out Ottawa team) were the ones without Nash, who posted career highs in goals (15) and assists (26).
“It hurts,” conceded coach Bruce Cassidy. “He’s a guy that filled in a lot of different spots, but the spot we need him in, or where he would have been, is third-line center. … He’s a guy on the penalty kill, did a good job for us, a faceoff guy. He’s a good anchor on that line with Backes and Heinen. He’s an underrated guy who does a lot of little things well that we’ll miss.
But Noel goes in there, different flavor, but he’s played a lot of center. He’ll share that responsibility with Backes. As the game might go along, Backs might take the draws or play a little more (center) if there’s a certain matchup. We’re comfortable with the guy replacing Riley, but we do miss him.”
Acciari and Nash are different players. While Nash is a cerebral, always-in-the-right-spot kind of player, Acciari is all about the crash-and-bang. But Backes doesn’t believe it will change the line’s mindset.
“Noel’s a little more physical and Riley’s maybe a little more accustomed to playing center in the league and a little more savvy, experienced. But in the end, the playoffs are the playoffs and you make do however you need to,” said Backes. “We’re going to have a line that’s going to be north-south, we need to be counted on responsibly, defensively and make sure we’re managing the puck, having those shifts that change momentum in games. When we’re called on, we’re going to do what we can.
We’re certainly not going to shy away from trying to create chances and being an offensive threat as well. Because a lot of the times in the playoffs, if you can keep teams in their own end for extended periods of time, keep them on their heels, that’s a good way to play defense.”
Cassidy had said on Tuesday that Donato was an option to fill in for Nash, but with a grand total of 12 NHL games, the coach felt that, at least for now, it was too big of an ask for the natural left winger to step into the middle. Acciari, meanwhile, plans to play to his strengths.
“I’m just going to try to be responsible defensively, and give Heino a little more room down low. He’s a little more skilled guy and I know Backs and I can throw the body which should open up the offensive zone for him. Backs and I will get to the net for him, get pucks there and get some greasy goals,” said Acciari.
It’s not all gloom and doom for Nash. Cassidy said he plans to try skating again today and, though he’s already had one false start this week, he hasn’t been ruled out for Saturday’s Game 2. But home ice — seemingly pretty important in this series — can be lost in one game.
Is the loss of Nash insurmountable? Of course not. Remember, in the B’s march to the Stanley Cup in 2011, Zdeno Chara was rendered ineffective by an illness in Game 1 against the Canadiens and it knocked him out for Game 2.
But with the way the regular season ended, and when you look at the Leafs’ clean injury report, it just doesn’t seem like things are breaking the B’s way.