In something of a 2015 NHL Draft plot twist, it’s now Jake DeBrusk coming under fire while Jakub Zboril and Zach Senyshyn generate some positive buzz.
The Bruins’ lineup for Thursday night’s game against the Rangers will feature all three -- whom the Bruins selected with three straight picks in the middle of the first round six years ago -- playing together at the NHL level for the first time.
DeBrusk returns to the lineup after being a healthy scratch on Tuesday, a move coach Bruce Cassidy hopes will jumpstart the struggling winger, who has just one goal in 17 games this season. He will go back to the second line and play on the left side with David Krejci at center and Nick Ritchie flipping to the right side.
"Jake, I don’t know if it’s a reset. The message was delivered to him, we all spoke to him. I don’t think there’s any grey area in that right now," Cassidy said. "It’s we need him to play better, and how is he going to play better. I’ve always said with Jake, the message for me to him is, ‘It’s a second-effort league, Jake, and you need more second effort, whether that’s on the forecheck, away from the puck, around the net.’
"And I think the rest will take care of itself, because he has the natural skillset to get things done at this level. By that I mean foot speed, he can score. Those are the things he can do if he has second effort on the puck and has it more often. It’s the same message. Hopefully he resets a little bit in terms of, 'Hey, let’s put the first 22 games behind us and let’s look at this as maybe a bit of a fresh start.'"
Senyshyn, meanwhile, has earned a call-up with his strong start to the season with AHL Providence. Senyshyn was waived after training camp, exposing him to 30 other teams before the Bruins could send him down.
He went unclaimed, though, and that has proved to be good news for the Bruins, as Senyshyn leads the P-Bruins with five goals and nine points to go along with a plus-five rating through 11 games. Senyshyn has played six NHL games over the last couple years, registering a goal and two assists.
Senyshyn will go in on a new-look fourth line, which will feature Jack Studnicka at center and Sean Kuraly moving to left wing. That leaves Anders Bjork and Chris Wagner as healthy scratches.
"He’s certainly played a good two-way game down there," Cassidy said of Senyshyn. "He’s killed some penalties, been on the power play, he’s scored, so he’s playing in all situations, which is good for his confidence. He’s probably at the stage of his career where he should be doing that, and that’s one of the reasons he’s here, is he’s played well down there.
"So the message to him is basically do what you do best and what you’ve been doing, which is being assertive. I understand he’s taken pucks to the net, got shots to the net. Be effective if you’re F1 on the puck of creating some uncomfortableness for the D, and play good hockey away from the puck."
Elsewhere in Bruins lineup news, Tuukka Rask was not on the ice for morning skate Thursday and will miss at least one more game after getting banged up Sunday. Jaroslav Halak will get a second straight start in goal, with Dan Vladar backing up.
Bruins president Cam Neely reiterated on The Greg Hill Show Thursday morning that Rask’s injury is nothing serious and that he’ll be “fine,” but it turns out he needs a little bit more down time.
"Tuukka, we thought it was something minor after New Jersey late in the game, but it’s lingered," Cassidy said. "So not on the ice today. Can’t really give you much of an update until he gets back on the ice. He was in this morning feeling better, but not well enough to play tonight or practice, so we’ll see where he’s at tomorrow."
Here are the Bruins’ projected lines for Thursday night: