Defenseman John-Michael Liles slotted into the lineup on Tuesday night against Nashville for the first time since Feb. 26 in Dallas. He did not dress for 13 games during his time out of the lineup.
Liles logged 13:13 in ice time against the Predators, en route to a 4-1 Bruins' win.
"It's never easy, but it took a couple of shifts to work the lactic acid out of my legs a little bit and then I felt pretty good after that," said Liles. "And just tried to keep it simple for the most part and stick to my game, the strengths of my game, and the big thing was we got the win and hopefully we can continue that tonight."
"I thought he got back on pucks well, broke it out well, he was good with Kevan Miller, they complement each other well," Cassidy said of Liles. "He has worked hard to stay conditioned and to stay sharp to go into the lineup, so we're going to give him another chance."
Colin Miller will be a healthy scratch for the second consecutive game. He had previously suited up for 13 straight games before sitting out Tuesday night's game, with Liles getting back into action.
"He's young, but he's not Brandon Carlo young, he's played pro for three, four years, so part of it's understanding consistency every night and playing to his strengths, what we want out of him, and then balancing that with what Johnny gives us," Cassidy said of the decision to sit Colin. "And this time of the year - you always want your young players to feel these moments and play through them, but you've also got to balance your lineup, if another veteran guy you feel gives you the best shot to win tonight."
"So we're looking at both those things, and either way I hope that when Colin does come back in, he's better off for it, that's the plan, and in the meantime Johnny gives us good, solid minutes. That's the goal we want to achieve, and I guess time will tell if that's how it plays out."
