The Bruins have 16 games left in the regular season. There will be plenty of attention on their three deadline acquisitions and how they acclimate between now and the playoffs. There will also be plenty of attention on the health of their defense.
But what happens with their goaltending over this next month could very well determine just how far they go in the playoffs -- and that's if they hold onto a playoff spot, which should be expected but not assumed just yet.
With Tuukka Rask (upper-body injury) and Jaroslav Halak (COVID-19 protocols) out recently, Jeremy Swayman and Dan Vladar have held down the fort well, with Swayman in particular playing really well in -- and winning -- three of his four starts. An eight-goal shellacking at the hands of the Capitals on Sunday tanked Vladar’s numbers for the season, but that game had more to do with the ragtag AHL-caliber defense in front of him.
Now the Bruins are finally set to get one of their veterans back, as coach Bruce Cassidy said Wednesday that Rask should be ready to return and start Thursday night against the Islanders, as long as there are no last-minute setbacks. There is still no timetable for Halak’s return, as he remains on the COVID list.
Cassidy and his staff -- particularly goalie coach Bob Essensa -- have a bit of a juggling act on their hands. They want to make sure Rask gets enough reps to find his game after missing all but one period over the last five weeks while also not overworking him and risking re-injury.
They also don’t want to cool off the hot hand, which right now is Swayman. They’ll have to decide if Vladar still has a role to play. They’ll also have to figure out what to do with Halak, who has now missed a week and a half and counting, whenever he returns.
Cassidy acknowledged it’s all going to be a challenge with just 16 games to go.
“Obviously with only so many games left, Tuukka -- he’s been out a while. It’s not a switch [you can flip],” Cassidy said. “I don’t care who you are or what position you play, you need reps. Very few guys can just jump back in there after missing time. I think Tuukka’s going to need his share. So as far as the rest part, obviously that depends on his play and how does he feel. Where’s he at physically, but how is his timing most importantly?
“So those are some things we have to look at as we go along. It’s hard for me to answer now. Obviously knowing that Swayman and Vladdy have been good for us, given us a chance to win, and there’s Jaro. He’s been off for a while now, too. Where is his timing going to be?
“So it’s going to be tough to get them all their reps and starts in how many games we have left. And then it’s a matter of, we’re still in a playoff fight here, so we have to play the guy who gives us the best chance to win. So we’re going to balance all of that stuff going forward. But the most important one for us right now is what’s in front of us. That’s Tuukka’s next start, which looks like it’s going to be [Thursday]. Hopefully we play well in front of him and he gets back in a rhythm.”
If Swayman and Vladar were struggling in the absence of Rask and Halak, it would be easy to just hand the goaltending rotation right back to Rask and Halak once they’re able to return. But Swayman in particular has forced further discussion with his stellar play, including another strong outing in Tuesday night’s shootout win over the Sabres.
Asked if Swayman could earn consistent playing time even with Rask and eventually Halak returning, Cassidy said yes.
“He certainly looks composed, has been composed,” Cassidy said of Swayman. “…That’s another game [Tuesday] where, stop the ones you’re supposed to, make a few extra saves, timely saves, and give your team a chance to win, and he did that very well. Not too busy in the third, but a good slot shot save, shootout saves. So yes, to answer your question.
“Let’s keep in mind that I don’t have a crystal ball. I don’t know what’s going to happen in three weeks. I don’t know how Jaro’s going to recover once he’s off the COVID list. How’s Tuukka’s time off going to treat him? Is it going to treat him well, where the time has done him good and he finds his game quickly? Or is it going to take a while? So there’s a lot of questions that go into it. But we haven’t ruled [Swayman] out as being a guy who could see some extra starts that we didn’t anticipate. That’s just performance-related.”
So, Rask is expected to start Thursday. Swayman would seem to be the most likely candidate to start Friday. That could very well be the rotation for the time being.
What happens when Halak returns, and what happens if Swayman outplays one or both veterans, is where things will really get interesting.
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