Boston Bruins v. Philadelphia Flyers: September 21st preseason game preview

Tuesday’s preseason victory proved a bit costly for the Boston Bruins.  Will that impact how they handle the remainder of the preseason?

On Tuesday night, the Boston Bruins improved their preseason record to 2-0-0 with a 4-2 victory over the Detroit Red Wings.  Game 2 of the preseason featured a few more of the Bruins regulars, and the B’s came out on top thanks to some great plays from the younger guys in the lineup.

Bruins goals against Detroit were scored by Ryan Fitzgerald (assists:  Jakub Zboril, David Krejci), Danton Heinen (assists:  Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson, David Backes), Austin Czarnik (Penalty Shot), and Teddy Purcell (assists:  Austin Czarnik, Rob O’Gara).

The contributions from the young players on the team did not go unnoticed by veterans Brad Marchand and David Krejci:

However, despite the victory, it came at a bit of a price.  Veteran defenseman Torey Krug took a puck to the face and didn’t return to the game.  According to the Bruins, he will be reevaluated in three weeks after suffering a non-displaced fracture to his jaw.  Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson also left the game after he suffered a currently undisclosed upper-body injury.  The Bruins are reporting that he is currently day-to-day.

The Bruins look to increase their record to 3-0-0 tonight at home against the Philadelphia Flyers.  The Flyers have played three preseason games to this point.  They dropped their opening game 3-2 in overtime against the New York Islanders last Sunday.  Yesterday, the same teams did split-squad games, one in Allentown, PA and one in Brooklyn, NY.  In game #1, the Flyers beat the Islanders in OT by a 3-2 margin, and in game #2, the Islanders took down the Flyers 3-2.

Schedule

Well, the same schedule applies today as has applied during the rest of training camp and the preseason.  Game Roster guys have a morning skate at 10:00 am at the Warrior Arena in Boston, Non-Game Roster guys at 11:15 am.  Puck drop at the TD Garden is at 7:00 pm, and the game will be featured on the NHL Network and NESN.

Game Roster

Players taking the ice in their Bruins sweaters are:

Forwards: Noel Acciari, Kenny Agostino, Patrice Bergeron, Anders Bjork, Anton Blidh, Colby Cave, Jesse Gabrielle, Danton Heinen, Joona Koppanen, Brad Marchand, Riley Nash, Zach Senyshyn, Ryan Spooner

Defensemen: Brandon Carlo, Zdeno Chara, Connor Clifton, Tommy Cross, Matt Grzelcyk, Jeremy Lauzon, Paul Postma

Goaltenders: Tuukka Rask, Malcolm Subban

Lines reported by the Bruins during the morning skate are as follows:

Non-Game Roster

Sitting out today:

Forwards: David Backes, Austin Czarnik, Jake DeBrusk, Ryan Fitzgerald, Colton Hargrove, Justin Hickman, David Krejci, Sean Kuraly, David Pastrnak, Chris Porter, Ted Purcell, Tim Schaller, Jordan Szwarz, Frank Vatrano

Defensemen: Chris Breen, Taylor Doherty, Emil Johansson, Charlie McAvoy, Adam McQuaid, Kevan Miller, Rob O’Gara, Jakub Zboril

Goaltenders: Anton Khudobin, Zane McIntyre

Some roster moves were done by the Bruins after the last game, sending some young prospects back to their OHL team:

What to watch for

Tonight’s game marks the much-anticipated debut of the Marchand-Bergeron-Bjork line.  The chemistry between the three players in practices has been noticed, namely by Bruins reporter Joe Haggerty.  Tonight we’ll all be a witness as to whether that will transition into game action.

I’ve seen so many tweets telling people to take what you see in the preseason with a grain of salt.  And while I get that, I think it’s still a pretty good early gauge as to how a player can handle the speed of the NHL.

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It’s not like these young rookies and prospects are taking on a beer league team; they’re playing against professional hockey players in NHL arenas. After watching him during rookie camp, if Bjork plays to even 75% of what people are expecting of him, I think he’s going to make quite an impression on the Bruins faithful and quickly.

Also, tonight will be the first game action for the Bruins 40 year-old captain, Zdeno Chara.  Playing with Brandon Carlo, whom he spent significant time with last season, people will be on the lookout to see whether he’s losing a step.  I hope Carlo can improve on the season he had last year, where he showed promise as a shutdown defenseman.  Who better to learn from than Chara?

Lastly, Tuukka Rask will be suited up for tonight’s game.  There are a lot of question marks as to who will be his back-up coming into the season.  Tuukka is regularly one of the heaviest relied upon starting goalies in the whole league.  I think Bruins nation would prefer to see him play less games this season and be fresher come March for a playoff push and the playoffs.

Next: Pastrnak has the skills to become legendary

On a final note…

On Tuesday, the NHL world was rocked with the announcement that New Jersey Devils forward Brian Boyle has been diagnosed with chronic myeloid leukemia.  He’s always been known to be a great team guy and great person.  All of us at Chowder and Champions wish he and his family the best during his battle, and I believe he has the support of the entire NHL behind him based on the number of tweets I saw.