Marchand lost to COVID protocol
Joins Kuraly, DeBrusk on list
The hits just keep coming for the Bruins.
Before Saturday’s matinee against the Buffalo Sabres, B’s coach Bruce Cassidy announced that first-line left wing Brad Marchand entered the NHL’s COVID protocol list. Marchand joined Sean Kuraly and Jake DeBrusk, both of whom have been out of action for over a week on the list.
BRUINS NOTEBOOK
“You’re always going to get thrown curve balls,” said Cassidy. “We have a deep roster and the other guys are ready to go. As I told the group today, Marchie plays on average 19 minutes. That’s 19 minutes (of opportunity) for somebody else, so step up and grab it. Every player in that room probably wants more responsibility. No player says, ‘Play me less, coach.’ So here’s a day that they’re going to get some of that.”
In dealing with the uncertainties of this season, Cassidy said he’s drawn on his experience coaching in the AHL, where players are constantly coming and going.
“You deal a little bit with those kinds of situations so there is a little bit of history there where you just get used to it and move on to the next player,” said Cassidy.
Trent Frederic got the biggest chance of his young NHL career, jumping up to play in Marchand’s spot with Patrice Bergeron and
David Pastrnak.
“(The message) to Frederic was play to your strengths,” said Cassidy. “You’ve got to shoot the puck on that line. Don’t automatically defer. We talked about that (Friday) in practice. Younger guys do it all the time. And he’s going to do it today. I know there’ll be a couple of times where he’ll look to make a play where it’s 50-50 whether he should shoot or pass. And when he comes back to the bench, we’ll have to say ‘Freddy, trust your instincts. It’s never a bad play to shoot the puck.’ Teammates don’t generally get on you when you shoot the puck, unless you’re missing an obvious play. These guys are all pros … and he still needs to be physical, get to the front of the net for those two.”
While the top line didn’t score in the 3-2 win, Frederic did not look completely out of place. He landed a couple shots on net and had a big hit early on. He also got in the face of Rasmus Ristolainen after the Sabre defenseman hit Pastrnak after the whistle.
Marchand wasn’t the only one sent to the protocol list. Assistant coach Kevin Dean landed there after having a close contact. He’ll be out through at least Sunday’s game against the Devils.
Season-ending surgery for Moore
The B’s also announced that defenseman John Moore, who has played sparingly the last two season, elected to undergo hip arthroscopy and labral repair on March 22. He will be out 5-6 months. The surgery was performed by Dr. Brian Kelly in New York.
It has been a rough go for Moore since he signed with the B’s as a free agent on July 1, 2018. He suffered a shoulder injury in his first season with the Bruins that required major offseason surgery that cut into his second season. He never got his footing under him last season and was replaced in the lineup. Moore played just 24 games last season and was limited to five games this season.
Moore has two more years left on his five-year deal that comes with a cap hit of $2.75 million.
Injuries, etc.
There was some good news on the injury front for a change with Karson Kuhlman, who blocked a shot with his hand/wrist area in Thursday’s OT loss to the Islanders. Cassidy said an MRI revealed that there was no structural damage to the area.
“He’s obviously got some issues holding the hockey stick right now so he’ll be listed as day-to-day,” said Cassidy.
Jeremy Lauzon made a surprise return to the lineup, his first game since breaking his hand in the Lake Tahoe game on Feb. 21. He played 18:32 with a shot on net and three blocks. Cassidy had originally said on Friday that he was very close but would not play on Saturday.
“I talked with Lauzy afterward and he felt ready to play. Medically, he was cleared to play but we didn’t know if he’d had enough practice time but we decided to go that route. So I gave you some misinformation there,” said Cassidy.
With the insertion of Lauzon, Jarred Tinordi came out of the lineup.
Jack Studnicka also returned to the lineup with the absence of Marchand, playing 7:04 with one shot on net.