Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy remained noncommittal about his Game 3 starting goalie as recently as his Game 2 postgame press conference Tuesday night.
It seems his decision has now been made. Cassidy during his pregame press conference Wednesday afternoon that Jaroslav Halak is "scheduled to start" Wednesday night.
That might technically leave open the possibility of a late change, but Cassidy said Halak has "recovered well" after facing 39 shots on goal and 86 shot attempts in the Bruins' 4-3 overtime loss Tuesday night, so "that's the plan."
In five starts since Tuukka Rask left the team, Halak is 4-1 with a .927 save percentage. There were some questions about whether he'd be able to handle starting back-to-back nights, given that he hasn't done that much in recent years. He only played on back-to-back days twice this season, and in both cases the second appearance came in relief. The last time he started back-to-back days was in November of 2018.
The other option, however, would have been turning to 23-year-old rookie Dan Vladar, who has never played in an NHL game. While Vladar was very good for AHL Providence this season and the Bruins think highly of them, this isn't exactly the ideal time for a young goalie to see his first NHL game action.
Elsewhere in the lineup, Cassidy said the Bruins have some decisions to make. He said at least one Bruins forward is a "game-time decision," though he didn't reveal who it was. He also said he and his staff were contemplating playing seven defensemen in order to help spread out the minutes among his defensemen on the second night of a back-to-back.
In that scenario, it would presumably be Jeremy Lauzon or John Moore who comes into the lineup. The "game-time decision" up front could impact that decision, though. If that player can't go, it's possible the seventh D would just take his roster spot. But if that player plays and is less than 100 percent, there could be some incentive to keep 12 forwards in the lineup in case that player re-aggravates whatever he's dealing with.
Cassidy did also note that defenseman Connor Clifton has played a little bit of forward in the past, so he could be used there in an "emergency situation" even though it's "not ideal."
On the other side, Lightning coach Jon Cooper said defenseman Ryan McDonagh will miss a second straight game. He did not announce his starting goalie during his pregame press conference, but it would be very surprising if it wasn't Andrei Vasilevskiy.
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