Mason Lohrei is back with the Bruins. Boston announced on Tuesday morning that the rookie defenseman has been recalled from AHL Providence, while right wing Oskar Steen has been assigned to Providence and center Matt Poitras has been placed on long-term injured reserve.
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That's the good news for fans who have been wanting to see more of Lohrei, who last played in Boston on Jan. 18 before being sent down to Providence.
The bad news is the development that preceded this call-up: Hampus Lindholm left Monday's game early in the third period with a lower-body injury and did not return.
There was no update on Lindholm's status after the game or on Tuesday, as the team has the day off. The next chance for an update would likely be coach Jim Montgomery's media availability at Wednesday's morning skate in Edmonton.
Lohrei being recalled before the Bruins hop on a plane Tuesday could indicate that the team at least expects Lindholm to be unavailable for the start of the four-game road trip, though.
Lindholm went down awkwardly in the corner after getting his legs tangled up with a Stars player. He was slow to get up and slow to get back to the bench.
Lindholm initially stayed on the bench and then took a twirl during the next commercial break to test out his right leg. He flexed it and massaged it several times, but then went down the tunnel to the locker room once he got back to the bench.
Losing Lindholm for any amount of time would be a significant blow. While his offensive production hasn’t been the same as last year, Lindholm is still second on the team in ice time (23:42 per game) and his plus-20 rating at 5-on-5 is tops on the team and ranks eighth among all NHL defensemen.
If the injury ends up being anything longer-term, it could force general manager Don Sweeney to alter his trade deadline plans as well.
As for Lohrei, he has played 27 NHL games this season, recording three goals, three assists and a minus-4 rating while playing 16:24 per game. In Providence, he has 13 points (1 goal, 12 assists) in 17 games with a plus-13 rating. In seven AHL games since the last time he was in Boston, he had seven points and a plus-9 rating.
The other two moves announced Tuesday are not surprising. Steen was waived on Sunday and cleared waivers on Monday, a precursor to him now being sent down. Poitras underwent season-ending shoulder surgery earlier this month, so it was only a matter of time before he eventually got moved to long-term injured reserve for salary cap purposes.