Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy provided a couple important updates prior to Thursday night’s game against the Rangers.
The first is that Charlie Coyle won’t play Thursday and is considered “day-to-day” after suffering an upper-body injury Tuesday night when he got hit by a shot from teammate Brandon Carlo.
Jake DeBrusk will move up from the fourth line to third-line right wing next to Sean Kuraly and Nick Ritchie, while Karson Kuhlman will re-enter the lineup on the fourth line with Curtis Lazar and Trent Frederic.
The second is that Jeremy Swayman will start in goal Thursday night and Tuukka Rask will start Saturday. Cassidy said he wasn’t ready to announce any goalie plans beyond that for the final two regular-season games on Monday and Tuesday.
Rask had previously said he expected to start one or two of the final handful of games, with Cassidy saying he was leaning towards two for Rask. That could mean one more start for Rask after Saturday.
Jaroslav Halak started Tuesday for the first time in a month and gave up four goals on 21 shots in an overtime loss. While it’s possible he gets one more start, it would appear Swayman has solidified himself as Rask’s backup ahead of Halak, which could lead the Bruins to want to give Swayman two of the final four games.
Here is the expect lineup for the Bruins Thursday night. Kevan Miller did not take part in morning skate, but that has been a normal occurrence as part of the load management for his knee. If he’s not fit to play, Connor Clifton would go in his place.
Brad Marchand - Patrice Bergeron - David Pastrnak
Taylor Hall - David Krejci - Craig Smith
Nick Ritchie - Sean Kuraly - Jake DeBrusk
Trent Frederic - Curtis Lazar - Karson Kuhlman
Jeremy Lauzon - Charlie McAvoy
Matt Grzelcyk - Brandon Carlo
Mike Reilly - Kevan Miller
Jeremy Swayman
Tuukka Rask