The Boston Bruins continue to get ravaged by injuries and with a playoff spot seemingly locked up, the team needs to consider resting some players.
The Boston Bruins have been really unlucky this season. The injury bug has bitten them and hasn’t let go.
Boston has had to deal with injuries throughout the season. It seems like everyone has been injured at some point this season.
The latest victim is Torey Krug. The defensemen is battling an upper-body injury and is out of commission for a while.
This is just getting absurd. How many injuries will the Bruins have to deal with?
Boston is in 2nd place in the Eastern Conference. They are 4 points ahead of the Toronto Maple Leafs. They could slip a little and they will still make the playoffs.
So now the question is do you start taking preventative measures. The Bruins definitely have some players that could use some rest.
Playoff hockey is something special. Players are going full throttle for 60 minutes. One second of lackadaisical play can end your season.
So the Boston Bruins have to be smart. They can’t run their players into the ground. Home ice is very important, but if your best players aren’t at their peak performance it doesn’t matter where you are going to play.
With all the injuries Boston has they need to give their guys a break. So here are the 5 players that should spend some time on the 9th floor and enjoy some rest and relaxation.
1. Tuukka Rask
Tuukka Rask has been playing great as of late. The goaltender seems to find his groove near the end of the season.
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It seems like Boston makes an effort to rest Rask when they can. These last two seasons we have seen Rask and the backup goaltender play a similar amount of games. This season Rask has only 6 more starts than Jaroslav Halak.
When Tuukka Rask does get tired his play starts to fall off drastically. Pucks from all angles can find a way into the back of the net.
There already seems to be a plan for Rask to take some time off. Bruce Cassidy expects the games to be split so Rask starts around 10 games and Halak starts around 7.
Goaltending is super important in the playoffs. A bad goaltender can tank your team’s chances at a Stanley Cup.
So the Bruins need to let Rask rest so he will be ready to get that Stanley Cup he desperately wants.
2. Zdeno Chara
There is no denying that Zdeno Chara is an old man at this point. Big Z has managed to stay in great shape, but he is still about to be a 42 year old defenseman. The regular season takes a toll on the Bruins captain.
Chara doesn’t like to rest. I’m pretty sure he would like to play 82 games every season. Chara thinks that rest before the playoffs does more harm than good.
"“Then you jump into another level of speed and emotions and I don’t like (having time off),” he said. “Nobody likes to wait seven, eight, or nine days between games. If you miss 10 days due to some minor injury, it takes you two to three games to get back into it. I personally don’t like it, and it’s my job to be in shape and my job to be ready, and I’m always doing my best to be at that level and where I need to be without getting days off.”"
Now I don’t envy being Bruce Cassidy. I wouldn’t want to be the guy that tells Chara he has to take a break, but it is the right thing to do.
Chara isn’t the fastest guy. He needs his legs fresh for the playoffs. We saw the Bruins get torn apart by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the playoffs last season because of how fast Toronto was. That can’t happen again.
So even though Zdeno Chara doesn’t want to take a few games off, the smart decision would be to give the captain a break.
3. David Pastrnak
David Pastrnak has dominated the 2018-19 NHL season, but the Boston Bruins need to be careful. Pastrnak is still recovering from a freak thumb injury that occurred after a team event.
If you watch Pasta play you know how important his hands are. The winger can dangle his way through defense’s and score some insane goals.
Now I don’t think that Pastrnak should sit out for the rest of the season. he needs to get used to playing again especially with the type of injury he has.
Also Bruce Cassidy needs to figure out where he is going to put Pastrnak. Is he going to go back to the top line or will he be paired with David Krejci on the 2nd line?
Still I think the Bruins shouldn’t rush Pastrnak back. They need him to be back to his dominant self in the playoffs.
If Bruce Cassidy puts Pastrnak back with Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand the Bruins could be the ones lifting the Stanley Cup at the end of the season.
4. Patrice Bergeron
There is one guy that is the heart and soul of the Boston Bruins, Patrice Bergeron. The Bruins just play so much better when Bergeron is in the lineup
It’s kind of hard not to improve with Bergeron on the ice. He is a 200′ player. There isn’t a part of the game that Bergeron isn’t skilled in. I’m surprised the Bruins haven’t given him a shot between the pipes.
Bergeron has had to miss some time due to injury this season. When he is out you notice. The Bruins can start to play some sloppy hockey without Bergy.
So I think the best move for the Bruins is to give Bergeron some time off. He is 33 years old. Bergeron can use all the rest he can get.
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Giving Bergeron a few games off will ensure that the center is ready for a long run in the playoffs. A few games up on the 9th floor won’t do Patrice Bergeron any harm.
5. Jake DeBrusk
Jake DeBrusk is another player that the Bruins shouldn’t be forcing back too soon.
This season has been another great season for the winger. It seemed like he was in store for a Sophomore slump, but Jake DeBrusk has been a scoring machine.
In 57 games, DeBrusk has 22 goals and 12 assists. He once again is one of the teams best goal scorers.
The last time we saw DeBrusk he didn’t look to good. It looked like he could barely skate due to a foot injury.
This is once again a chance for the Bruins to give DeBrusk some rest that he desperately needs. If DeBrusk is able to perform well in the playoffs the Bruins will be a tough team to beat.
So let’s see if the Boston Bruins are smart and rest these guys before hopefully having another parade through the streets of Boston once again this year.