Preview: Bruins at Red Wings

BRUINS (3-4-0) at RED WINGS (6-2-0)
7 p.m. ET; FS-D, NESN, NHL.TV

Bruins team scope

Goalie Tuukka Rask will be in goal for the Boston Bruins after missing the past three games because of general soreness. He took part in the morning skate without any problems. "If he doesn't have any problems between now and game time, he's going to be in," coach Claude Julien said. Rookie Zane McIntyre will be the backup since Anton Khudobin is out with an upper-body injury and Malcolm Subban was returned to Providence of the American Hockey League. The Bruins have lost three straight, although Julien isn't blaming it all on the goaltending situation. Boston was outscored 14-4 in defeats to the Montreal Canadiens, Minnesota Wild and New York Rangers. "We need to play a solid team game, and we're going to have to be almost perfect to beat Detroit," Julien said. "This is a time where you have to find a way to win a game."

Red Wings team scope

The Detroit Red Wings look for their seventh straight win, with goaltending having played a major role during the previous six victories. Jimmy Howard, who will start, has allowed one goal in two starts. Petr Mrazek is 4-0-0 with a .945 save percentage during the streak. "To be an elite team in this league, you must have elite goaltending, and that's what we are getting right now," coach Jeff Blashill said. "When the guys have confidence that saves are going to get made, it lets them play a more aggressive game." Defenseman Niklas Kronwall hasn't played this season due to knee problems, but is getting closer to a return. "I've been skating with the guys in the mornings and I'm not having any troubles," he said. "What I've got to do now is be able to battle for the puck without problems. That's what I'm working on now." Forward Tomas Jurco (back surgery) also took part in the morning skate and expects to be back in 2-3 weeks.

Bruins projected lineup

Brad Marchand -- Patrice Bergeron -- Danton Heinen
Ryan Spooner -- David Krejci -- Austin Czarnik
Matt Beleskey -- Riley Nash -- Jimmy Hayes
Tim Schaller -- Dominic Moore -- Noel Acciari
Zdeno Chara -- Brandon Carlo
Torey Krug -- Adam McQuaid
John-Michael Liles -- Colin Miller
Tuukka Rask
Zane McIntyre
Scratched:Joe Morrow
Injured:Anton Khudobin (upper body), David Backes (elbow), Kevan Miller (hand)
Suspended:David Pastrnak

Red Wings projected lineup

Gustav Nyquist -- Frans Nielsen -- Dylan Larkin
Tomas Tatar -- Henrik Zetterberg -- Andreas Athanasiou
Justin Abdelkader -- Darren Helm -- Riley Sheahan
Drew Miller -- Luke Glendening -- Steve Ott
Danny DeKeyser -- Mike Green
Jonathan Ericsson -- Alexey Marchenko
Brendan Smith -- Ryan Sproul
Jimmy Howard
Petr Mrazek
Scratched:Xavier Ouellet
Injured:Niklas Kronwall (knee), Tomas Jurco (back), Thomas Vanek (middle body)

Status report

With Pastrnak suspended for two games, Heinen will go from a healthy scratch to joining Marchand and Bergeron on Boston's top line. … Vanek remains day to day, so Abdelkader will stay on Helm's line, with Athanasiou playing with Zetterberg and Tatar.

Who's hot

Nyquist has three goals and five assists eight games, and Helm and Green each have seven points. … Marchand leads Boston with 10 points, including seven assists. Pastrnak is the only other Bruins player with more than four.