Two games after Bruins coach Jim Montgomery made Johnny Beecher a healthy scratch, Boston's other rookie center, Matt Poitras, was a healthy scratch for Thursday's 3-1 loss to the Buffalo Sabres.
Montgomery bluntly said that Beecher's benching was the result of his play slipping, but he had a different explanation Thursday night when asked about Poitras sitting.
"Something we've been discussing is trying to put him in situations to have a lot of success. So, this was planned," Montgomery said. "He'll be back in the lineup on Saturday. This is an opportunity for him to build some strength and rest into his program. It's a grind. It's a tough league. And this is a way we think he can help the Bruins the most and help his game the most, in a positive fashion. So, this has been in the works for a little while. We started to implement it when we finished those nine games in 16 days."
Montgomery said it's not about Poitras having already hit some sort of rookie wall, but rather a proactive approach to try to avoid that wall down the line.
"I don't think he's hit a wall," Montgomery said. "I just think it's a new season and he's 19 years old in the hardest league. He's playing really well for us in the hardest league. We're trying to put him in situations where he gets more juice."
It sounds like a cross of "load management," which has become more common across all sports, and the Anaheim Ducks' "Leo Plan," which is what they're calling their unique developmental blueprint for this year's No. 2 overall pick, Leo Carlsson.
The Ducks have scratched the 18-year-old Carlsson for eight of their 25 games this season, but those scratches aren't just simple rest days. When he's not playing games, Carlsson does more off-ice strength and conditioning work.
Montgomery's "build some strength" comment suggests something similar could be happening here, although it still seems highly unlikely that Poitras will be scratched anywhere near as often as Carlsson.
UPDATE: Montgomery said on Friday that the "Poitras Plan" is in fact inspired by the "Leo Plan," and that there will be more scheduled nights off for Poitras going forward. He did not specify exactly how often those will be.
Poitras also got more on-ice work Thursday than he might at a normal morning skate, as he was spotted working 1-on-1 with Montgomery before the skate started.
While Thursday was the first game Poitras has missed this season, Montgomery has scaled back his minutes at times, especially in games where the Bruins have been protecting a lead in the third period.
"It's just part of the process when you have some young players playing in important minutes," Montgomery said this week. "The center position is really hard to play for us. It just is. It requires a lot more skating than if you play man-on-man. And we're seeing that, over time, with both of our young centers, that they're doing a terrific job, but there's going to be times where we need to pull back minutes because it's a very demanding position for us."
Morgan Geekie shifted from wing to center Thursday with Poitras out, while Oskar Steen re-entered the lineup on the fourth line. The Bruins' comfort level with both of those guys in those spots likely makes it a little easier to give Poitras an occasional night off.
