Backes gets chance on top unit
BRUINS NOTEBOOK
It remains to be seen if 32-year-old David Backes can deliver on his five-year, $30 million contract. It appears he’ll get a shot as the right winger on the Bruins’ top line with Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand starting tonight against San Jose.
But Backes’ eloquent office leadership is a major plus for a Bruins team likely to add multiple youngsters each of the next few years. He spoke at length yesterday about Tuesday’s coaching change.
“It’s never an easy thing to go through,” Backes said of Claude Julien’s exit and Bruce Cassidy’s promotion. “It’s someone (getting fired) you have a good relationship with as a coach, (and) you see the human side of it.
“It’s certainly a time when you need to reflect and see what you could have done differently in the past and what you need to do differently going forward, not continue the status quo. That’s the mindset in here. Talking to a few guys the last 24 hours ... some are uncertain whether that was the right move, but reality is reality.
“(We’ve had) two good days, (and) we need to move forward, come together as a group to come through this adversity.”
On joining Bergeron and Marchand, Backes said, “What these two guys do together is something I’ve never seen before. The way they read off each other, complement each other, is fantastic. It seems whoever they’ve put there has been complementary and been able to help them and have a lot of success. Hopefully (it will be) no different with me.”
Line shuffle
Cassidy had a new look to the lines yesterday. Along with the Backes-Bergeron-Marchand trio, David Krejci’s No. 2 line had Matt Beleskey and David Pastrnak on the wings. The third line had Ryan Spooner in the middle between Jimmy Hayes and Frankie Vatrano. The fourth line was Dominic Moore centering Riley Nash and Tim Schaller.
“The lines are fluid right now,” said Cassidy. “We’re looking for what’s going to be the best for the team, without ripping everything apart.”
Khudobin back up
Bruins goalie Anton Khudobin basically has been on a shuttle between Boston and Providence this season. He was brought back up again yesterday, and rookie Zane McIntyre was sent down. The two goalies are a combined 1-10-2 as Tuukka Rask’s backup.
“It’s been kind of crazy,” Khudobin said of his long list of transactions. “I just take it as it is. Like I’ve said earlier, I’m just a soldier. They told me to do certain stuff, so I’m doing it. . . . Of course you don’t want to feel that all the time. I don’t want to have this rotation of going back and forth, back and forth. But I guess I have to take it as it is.”
Chara in limbo
Captain Zdeno Chara missed practice for the second straight day because of illness and is questionable for tonight. He would be a vital piece in tackling Joe Thornton and the rest of the big, heavy Sharks.
“He’s still under the weather,” Cassidy said. “That will be a gametime decision. He’s a proud guy. I wouldn’t be surprised if he’ll walk through the door ready to play.”
The Sharks lead the Pacific Division and are 7-1-2 in their past 10 games. Thornton is having an odd year (three goals, all empty-netters, and 30 assists) while defenseman Brett Burns is a Norris Trophy lock (22 goals, 35 assists, plus-17) and a contender for the Hart Trophy (MVP).
Carlo impresses
Cassidy sees rookie defenseman Brandon Carlo as a solid two-way contributor.
“I certainly wouldn’t call him an offensive defenseman, but he’s a 200-foot player in my estimation and will continue to develop (the offensive) part of his game,” the coach said. . . .
Cassidy wants to rely less on passing to the points
“I’m not trying to make enemies in our defense corps,” he said. “What I’m trying to say is find the balance. Don’t take the easy way out and automatically throw it low to high. It allows their team at times to recover good defensive position when you move the puck away from the net. We’d like to . . . create a little more anxiety in front of the net.”