The Bruins will begin their Eastern Conference first round playoff series against the Toronto Maple Leafs onThursday.
With days off scheduled for Sunday and Monday, and possibly Tuesday, we might not get a look at coach Bruce Cassidy's lineup until Wednesday. We also won't know the status of Sean Kuraly, Kevan Miller and Chris Wagner, who are all at different stages of being injured and possibly returning.
We don't need to see a practice, though, to project the lineup that will face Toronto in Game 1 at TD Garden. Here's one shot at it:
First line
Brad Marchand -- Patrice Bergeron -- David Pastrnak
The Maple Leafs haven't forgotten what this line did to them in the Bruins' seven-game first-round win last year (30 points combined) and neither has Cassidy. When you have a line that's among the top three or four lines in hockey, you keep it together until, or if, there's a need to break it up. Boston's depth improved after the trade deadline and down the stretch. And you can still see some brief glimpses of rust on Pastrnak's game (especially taking care of the puck in the defensive and neutral zones) so it'd be best for Cassidy to put him where he feels most comfortable and has had the most success.
Second line
Jake DeBrusk -- David Krejci -- Karlson Kuhlman
It'd be easier for me to list the players that didn't play with DeBrusk and Krejci this year, but know it's a list that goes from Lee Stempniak and Anders Bjork to the likes of Danton Heinen and David Backes, and even Marchand and Pastrnak for a short stint.
Kuhlman has earned this job in his handful of games because of his willingness to just the length of the rink, go to the net and create space for his two high-end linemates. That's really all DeBrusk and Krejci need. Kuhlman may not be much of a finisher, but neither are the other competitors for this spot.
Kuhlman's presence in the lineup also gives Cassidy the flexibility he craves because the coach is so quick to make changes if things go even slightly off the rails. Kuhlman can play in the bottom six if Cassidy needs someone to move up. And Kuhlman provides penalty-killing depth.
Third line
Marcus Johansson -- Charlie Coyle -- Chris Wagner
This line was thrown together somewhat haphazardly by Cassidy, but it seemed to be clicking before Wagner began resting his lower-body injury. The two new guys, Coyle and Johansson, continued to build chemistry, even as the Bruins were in avoid-injury mode the last two games of the regular season. You've got three guys here who can protect the puck and at the very least grind teams down to soften them up for the top two lines.
Fourth line
Danton Heinen -- Noel Acciari -- David Backes
Heinen's play with Bergeron and Marchand during Pastrnak's injury absence should be rewarded with more than a fourth-line role in the postseason. But remember these are just lines to start the series and Cassidy could move Heinen up as he sees fit over the course of games and later in the series. Same as the third line, this line should be proficient at protecting the puck. And Backes' physical element will come in handy if Zach Hyman, Nazem Kadri or someone else gets out of line. Joakim Nordstrom is the odd man out in this scenario because he just doesn't have enough offensive upside.
If/when Kuraly's ready to return, Cassidy can reunite Kuraly-Acciari-Wagner and plug Heinen into the third line while dropping Backes out. That would leave the intimidation to Kuraly, Wagner and defenseman Kevan Miller. With a fully healthy lineup, Kuhlman might find himself on the sidelines, but then Cassidy would have to do some major juggling because it seems the coach doesn't want to revisit the DeBrusk-Krejci-Heinen combination that struggled to start the season.
Defense
Zdeno Chara -- Charlie McAvoy
Torey Krug -- Brandon Carlo
Matt Grzelcyk -- Kevan Miller
If healthy, these are the six that will start the series. Grzelcyk could flip with Krug if Krug has a hard time matching up against Auston Matthews' line. If Miller isn't 100 percent healthy or struggles with rust when he gets in, Connor Clifton might be a solid alternative. The rookie has played well down the stretch but there's no way to forecast how he'd handle playoff pressure. On the road the Bruins may have to go with a Chara/Carlo combo if they're not getting the matchups they want.
Goaltenders
Tuukka Rask
Jaroslav Halak
Rask is your Game 1 starter. He started last year's series the way you'd expect but then gave up four goals and was pulled in Game 5. He gave up four goals in Game 7 and stayed in. If he starts this year's series like he ended last year's, Rask will get pulled in favor of Halak. But there won't be any need to panic, recent Stanley Cup winners have changed goaltenders once or twice along the long road to their championships, and the Bruins can still go deep even if they have to employ both their goaltenders – as starters and relievers.
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