By: Jack Studley | Follow me on Twitter/X @jackstudley13
The Boston Bruins (12-8-0) are back on home ice on Monday night when they play host to the Carolina Hurricanes (12-5-1). Boston has seen recent success in its home building, winning their last six home games at the TD Garden. They have also won nine of their last 11 games and lead the Atlantic Division. The Bruins are coming off a gritty and gutsy 3-2 win in Montreal on Saturday night, but Charlie McAvoy and Viktor Arvidsson both suffered injuries on Saturday and will be out of the lineup tonight. After this game, the black and gold will pack their bags for a four-game road trip, with three of the games taking place in California.
Ahead of the game, the Boston Bruins called up forwards Matej Blumel and Riley Tufte from the Providence Bruins. Second-line wingers Viktor Arvidsson and Casey Mittelstadt have been placed on injured reserve. Both call-ups have been producing at a point-per-game rate in Providence. In 13 games, Tufte has eight goals and 16 points, leading the team in scoring. Blumel has scored twice this year and has picked up 13 points on the season.
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Matej Blumel joined the second line at morning skate, alongside Pavel Zacha and Alex Steeves. He will also have the opportunity to showcase his offensive capabilities on the power play. “Blumel, we lost another power play guy, so we’re hoping to get more minutes, especially on the power play [and] special teams with him. He is a threat on there, so hopefully he can be the same way here in the NHL.” As well as praising Blumel, Sturm believes that Tufte earned his promotion, and Sturm’s background as an AHL coach helped him see both sides of the call-up.
Charlie McAvoy was not present at the Bruins’ morning skate this morning. He took a puck to the face during the Montreal game and did not return. Fortunately, he flew home with the team after the game. Unfortunately, there is no timeline for McAvoy’s return. “He’s with the doctors right now; there’s no timeline. Obviously, he is going to be out tonight,” Sturm said after the morning skate. Henri Jokiharju, who was out of the lineup on Saturday, is expected to return tonight; he skated alongside Nikita Zadorov on the first pair at the Bruins’ morning skate.
The Hurricanes, who are one of three teams ahead of the Bruins in the Eastern Conference, have found success in a lot of areas this season, except for the power play. The Hurricanes’ power play ranks 31st in the NHL, converting at a 13.5% rate. Their offense, however, is scoring an average of 3.67 goals per game, ranking Carolina second in the league. Carolina has gone 6-3-0 on the road, including a 2-1 loss at the TD Garden on November 1. They boast three strong goaltenders, rotating through Frederik Anderson, Pyotr Kochetkov, and Brandon Bussi; Kochetkov has gone 3-0-0 with a 1.92 goals-against average since returning from injury.
Marco Sturm did not confirm who would be in goal for the Bruins tonight. Jeremy Swayman has won his last five starts and stopped 28 Hurricane shots in the Bruins’ 2-1 win on November 1. In those five starts, Swayman has a 2.37 goals against average and a .923 save percentage. He currently ranks second in the NHL for goals saved above expected, demonstrating that he has significantly improved his performance from last season.
The Bruins are looking to pick up their sixth straight home win tonight, with puck drop happening shortly after 7:00 PM. The game will be televised locally on NESN, and 98.5 will have the radio broadcast. If you are interested in getting to the TD Garden to watch the Bruins take on the Hurricanes, please check out our StubHub Ticket-affiliated link HERE for the most competitive concert and sporting event tickets in the North American region.
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