Lauzon Set for NHL Debut Against Flyers

BOSTON - For the second time in three games, a young defenseman will make his NHL debut for the Bruins.
A slew of injuries on the B's back end prompted the promotion of Urho Vaakanainen from Providence over the weekend, but just minutes into his second NHL game in Ottawa on Tuesday night the 19-year-old suffered a concussion after an elbow from Senators defenseman Mark Borowiecki.
With Torey Krug, Charlie McAvoy, and Kevan Miller not ready to return, the Bruins turned to Providence once again, recalling Jeremy Lauzon for Thursday night's game with the Philadelphia Flyers at TD Garden. The 21-year-old is expected to play his first game alongside Steven Kampfer on Boston's third pairing.

"This is what you wait for all your life, so just gonna soak it in and do my best…looking forward to tonight," said Lauzon. "A little bit of both [excitement and nervousness] maybe…that was my dream, playing in the NHL, so now I'm here. Gonna do my best and try to stay here as long as I can."

The Quebec native, drafted in the second round (52nd overall) of the 2015 NHL Draft, got off to a strong start for the P-Bruins, notching a goal and three assists in six games.
"I had a pretty good start to the season, I've been playing well," said Lauzon. "Just going to try to translate my game here and do my best…play simple, play a hard game, and when the opportunity is there offensively, put some pucks on net and make some plays."
Cassidy was pleased with the left-shot's preseason performance and complimented the youngster's passion and his improving composure with the puck.
"He's hard, he gets after it," said Cassidy, who expects Lauzon to help out on the penalty kill. "Sometimes we have to reel him in a little bit and make sure when it's your turn to go, go…should be a good matchup. Philly's got some big bodies, he's a big kid, so that will hopefully neutralize some of them.
"At the end of the day he's played well down there and it's his chance. Off he goes like a lot of other guys the last couple years."

Krug Skates Again

Krug practiced with the team for the second straight morning skate and is getting closer to a return to the lineup. Cassidy did not rule out the blue liner for Saturday's game against Montreal, but said it's probably "a stretch" that Krug plays before next week.
"Step 1, he's now with the team for a few days," said Cassidy. "He needs some contact. [Friday] we'll have a practice, so probably will be able to give you a better idea after practice tomorrow or Saturday morning.
"Saturday seems like a stretch, but I wouldn't rule it out because once you start skating it becomes a comfort level for him and then the doctors clear him. My guess is sometime next week would probably be better. But just a guess."
Krug re-injured his left ankle during the final preseason contest, his second game back from the broken ankle he suffered against Tampa Bay in the playoffs.
"Every day [I] try to do a little bit more and try to ramp things up," said Krug. "We're working on it and once I feel ready to go, hopefully I can get in there and make a difference."
The biggest step now for the 27-year-old is adjusting to game action - which can't be replicated in practice.
"I need to play games, that's the only way to get into game shape," said Krug. "Went through a little bit of training camp and you can ride the bike all day long and skate on your own, up and down the ice, but there's nothing like playing in a game and battling in the corners and the physical aspect of it.
"That's the tough part of the situation I'm in. I only played one preseason game since the first week of May…but you've just got to put your head down and go to work and hopefully feel as good as you can."

Injury Updates

Cassidy also provided updates on several of Boston's other injured players:
David Backes (upper-body): "[Feeling] better…[but] he's still out. Didn't skate today, didn't skate yesterday. So obviously that's the next progression to get back on the ice. But again I don't have a definitive timeline."
Urho Vaakanainen (concussion): "Urho is doing better today, but obviously he's not in the lineup tonight and we're not sure going forward when he'll be back."
Charlie McAvoy (upper-body): "Charlie's here today, feeling better. But [him and Backes are] both upper body and they'll continue to monitor them and hopefully they get feeling good enough to get on the ice and then they're closer to being in the lineup."
Kevan Miller (hand): "He'll be four weeks from the injury. He'll get re-evaluated. So he's three more weeks I guess; it was Edmonton last Thursday, so we'll miss him for at least the next three weeks. Hopefully when he's re-evaluated it's a quick turnaround for him."

Rooting Interest

Cassidy and his son, Cole, were back at Fenway Park on Wednesday night for the Red Sox' 4-2 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 2 of the World Series. The two also attended Game 2 of the American League Championship series against the Houston Astros - a 7-5 Red Sox victory - making the duo 2-0 this postseason.
"I think I'm David Price's good luck charm," said Cassidy. "Two games I've seen him pitch he's been very good…good for him, I'm happy for him. It's been a tough go at times for him. He was lights out, so was their bullpen. They look good.
"Alex has done a terrific job there, seems like every move he makes worked out. Good for him. Probably why they're up 2-0. They looked good yesterday. They're hitting, fielding, the pitching looks great. Tough road for the Dodgers."

Thursday's Projected Lineup

Brad Marchand - Patrice Bergeron - David Pastrnak
Danton Heinen - David Krejci - Jake DeBrusk
Anders Bjork - Joakim Nordstrom - Chris Wagner
Ryan Donato - Sean Kuraly - Noel Acciari
Zdeno Chara - Brandon Carlo
Matt Grzelcyk - John Moore
Jeremy Lauzon - Steven Kampfer
Jaroslav Halak
Tuukka Rask