Practice Notebook: Carlo Taking Things Day by Day

BOSTON - Brandon Carlo is not jumping to any conclusions. He knows things can change in an instant, so he's decided to take his situation day by day.
But, with just three days until the Bruins season opener in Columbus, the 19-year-old defenseman is still up with the big club, which to him is quite an accomplishment.
"I kind of just take it as another opportunity to keep improving myself, showing what I can do out on the ice. Even in practice, that's another opportunity every day. It's really nice to still be around," said the 2015 second-round pick.
"I'm living my life right now…take my schedule from today and hopefully come back tomorrow."

The 6-foot-5, 203-pound blue liner had a taste of the preseason last year, but this time around has been a bit different. He is more calm and confident in his abilities.
He's also had the opportunity to play alongside veterans Zdeno Chara and John-Michael Liles for the majority of training camp.
"It's amazing. You come off and they're so supportive of you. The first couple times I had a couple shifts that I didn't really like, they were like, 'It's OK, just get over it and go for the next one,'" said Carlo.

"With their experience, it helps so much because they have so much knowledge of the game that they can share with me each and every shift. It's pretty awesome and I appreciate the chance to play with those guys."
Carlo has also had a couple of fellow rookies by his side, as defenseman Rob O'Gara and forward Danton Heinen are also still with the team.
"It's been nice. Robbie's been my roommate so we've had a lot of time to talk and Heins and I stick together for lunches and dinners and things like that," said Carlo. "It's been great to have those guys around and go through the experience together.
"It's all really exciting for us, but we're just trying to do our best each and every day."

Roster Transactions Announced

The Bruins announced a number of roster moves Monday evening.
Forwards Seth Griffith, Tyler Randell and Tim Schaller have been placed on waivers for the purpose of assignment to the Providence Bruins, while forwards Jake DeBrusk and Sean Kuraly and goaltender Malcolm Subban have been assigned to Providence.
"There are still some injuries that keep things up in limbo a little bit and we have to look at that," Bruins coach Claude Julien said following Monday morning's practice. "Right now, we're cutting down to a much lower number and we'll go from there. That doesn't mean that there won't be changes there when players come back - we'll have to make more decisions.
"But for now, the situation that we're in, it's closer to being stable than not."
Twenty-four players remain on the roster.

Banged Up Bruins

The injured players Julien was referring to are Kevan Miller, Adam McQuaid, and Austin Czarnik. All three missed practice Monday.
Czarnik and Miller were injured during Saturday night's preseason finale against Philadelphia. McQuaid and Czarnik are considered day-to-day, while Miller was still being evaluated on Monday.
"Obviously it was a shoulder to the head," Julien said of the injury to Czarnik. "We're just being cautious with him and [we'll] see where it goes."

Nash Moves to the Middle

With Czarnik missing practice, Riley Nash moved from fourth-line right wing to Czarnik's spot as the third-line center. His versatility was part of the reason the Bruins brought him aboard this summer.
"I think he's very capable of filling in at that spot," said Julien. "Put him in there today for the sake of having four lines and [we'll] see what he gives us if we have to go without Austin there."
Nash played the middle for a large portion of training camp and feels comfortable at either position. The biggest challenge for the 27-year-old has been adapting to Julien's systems.
"It's an adjustment, getting to know all the guys, the systems," said Nash. "Definitely had my challenges with the systems; they're quite a bit different than what I played last year.
"[You] try to get that where you're not thinking as much and it's second nature instead of constantly reminding yourself where you're supposed to be. That's been the biggest thing, just figuring out what the coaches want."

Road Sweet Road?

The Bruins open the season with three games on the road: in Columbus, Toronto, and Winnipeg. With a number of new players and some of the team's core having missed time while at the World Cup of Hockey, the early-season trip could provide a valuable bonding experience.
"[Bonding on] the road is definitely important and it's nice to have that right away," said Patrice Bergeorn. "We have a few young guys there that are new with us, but they seem to be fitting in really well and pushing for a spot which is what you want. It's healthy."

Practice Lines and Groupings

Marchand-Bergeron-Pastrnak
Spooner-Krejci-Backes
Beleskey-Nash-Hayes
Heinen-Moore-Acciari
Chara-Carlo
Krug-Ehrhoff
Liles-C. Miller
Morrow-O'Gara
PP1: Krejci, Krug + Spooner, Bergeron, Backes
PP2: Liles, C. Miller + Marchand, Pastrnak, Hayes