Qualifiers Buzz: Bergeron misses practice, Rask returns for Bruins

Welcome to the Stanley Cup Qualifiers Buzz. The 24 teams who will be competing for the Stanley Cup are in their respective hub cities (Toronto for the 12 Eastern Conference teams, Edmonton for the 12 Western Conference teams). The Stanley Cup Qualifiers began Saturday.

Here's a look around the League at the latest from the Qualifiers:

Boston Bruins

Patrice Bergeron was absent from practice and Tuukka Rask returned Monday after the goalie missed a 4-1 loss to the Philadelphia Flyers in the round-robin portion of the Stanley Cup Qualifiers at Scotiabank Arena on Sunday with an illness.

Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy said Bergeron took a maintenance day and will return Tuesday. The center was replaced by Trent Frederic between Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak, with Jack Studnicka also at right wing. He played 18:38 on Sunday in Toronto, the hub city for the Eastern Conference.

Bergeron is a finalist for the Selke Trophy, given to the NHL forward who best excels in the defensive aspects of the game, and scored 56 points (31 goals, 25 assists) in 61 games before the season was paused March 12 due to concerns surrounding the coronavirus.

Cassidy said he expects Rask, a finalist for the Vezina Trophy given to the top goalie in the NHL, to play against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Wednesday (4 p.m. ET; NBCSN, NHL.TV, SN, TVAS, NESN, FS-F). The Bruins also play the Washington Capitals (Aug. 9) in the round-robin, which will determine seeding in the East for the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Rask allowed three first-period goals and made 17 saves on 20 shots playing almost half of a 4-1 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets in an exhibition game July 30. -- Amalie Benjamin

Nashville Predators

Juuse Saros and Pekka Rinne will find out Monday night who will start against the Arizona Coyotes in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Qualifiers at Rogers Place in Edmonton on Tuesday (NHLN, NHL.TV, SN360, FS-TN, FS-A PLUS).

"We're going to finalize the decision (Monday) and I'll let the goalies know the night before the game," coach John Hynes said.

Rinne's streak of 89 consecutive postseason starts ended Sunday when Saros made 33 saves in a 4-3 loss to the Coyotes in Game 1.

Hynes praised Saros after the game. The 25-year-old made 22 saves on 23 shots in the second and third periods.

"He had some situations where I thought he stayed mentally focused," Hynes said. "He had some big saves throughout the game. I liked his response after the first couple. The third one, he had nothing to do with it, it was just a breakdown in coverage."

Rinne was 18-14-4 with a 3.17 goals-against average and .895 save percentage in 36 games (35 starts), the worst statistics in his 12 full NHL seasons. Saros was 17-12-4 with a 2.70 GAA and .914 save percentage in 40 games (34 starts). He played seven playoff games in the past three seasons, all in relief of Rinne. -- Mike G. Morreale

Carolina Hurricanes

Defenseman Dougie Hamilton did not play Game 2 of the Qualifiers against the New York Rangers, a 4-1 victory in Toronto.

"He skated today a little bit better, so we're getting close," coach Rod Brind'Amour said Sunday.

Hamilton has not practiced since July 22, when he left the ice in discomfort during power-play drills. He hasn't played since having surgery Jan. 17 to repair a fractured left fibula. He scored 40 points (14 goals, 26 assists) in 47 games this season.

The Hurricanes can eliminate the Rangers from the best-of-5 series with a win in Game 3 on Tuesday (8 p.m. ET; NBCSN, SN360, TVAS, MSG, FS-CR).

Philadelphia Flyers

Michael Raffl will not play for the Flyers against the Washington Capitals in their round-robin game at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on Thursday and could be out even longer.

The forward had a goal and an assist in a 4-1 win against the Boston Bruins on Sunday, but he left the game with 6:17 remaining in the third period after falling into the boards in front of the Philadelphia bench after becoming tangled with Bruins defenseman Jeremy Lauzon.

"I can't get into specifics, can't get into lengths because of the NHL protocol," Flyers coach Alain Vigneault said Monday. "But I can say that he's not going to be available for a little bit."

As part of the NHL Return to Play Plan, teams are not permitted to disclose player injury or illness information.

Forward Joel Farabee will play Thursday, but Vigneault wasn't ready to announce where in the lineup he would fit. The rookie began training camp at left wing on the second line with center Kevin Hayes and right wing Travis Konecny, and he split time with Raffl as the left wing on the fourth line. Farabee had one shot on goal in 8:56 of ice time in a 3-2 overtime win against the Pittsburgh Penguins in an exhibition game July 28. He scored 21 points (eight goals, 13 assists) in 52 games.

"Coming back from the quarantine he looks really good," center Sean Couturier said of Farabee. "Looks like he took a step forward. Just the way he battles, and he's involved with the puck and without the puck. He's had ups and downs, but I think the important thing is just to kind of grow from it, learn from it. He came back prepared and he's looked good. We're excited to have him in the lineup, and I think we're counting on him to make a difference down the road." -- Adam Kimelman

New York Islanders

Johnny Boychuk did not practice and is questionable to play against the Florida Panthers in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Qualifiers at Scotiabank Arena on Tuesday (Noon ET; NBCSN, NHL.TV, SN, TVAS, MSG+, FS-F).

The defenseman was injured at 2:44 of the second period in New York's 2-1 win in Game 1 of the best-of-5 series in Toronto, the hub city for the Eastern Conference, on Saturday from an illegal check to the head by Panthers defenseman Mike Matheson, who received a minor penalty following video review.

Islanders coach Barry Trotz said defensemen Andy Greene and Noah Dobson are the options to replace Boychuk. Dobson, like Boychuk, is a right-handed shot.

"It doesn't really matter what hand, I'm comfortable with our 10 defensemen right now," said Trotz, who also has Thomas Hickey and Sebastian Aho on the postseason roster. "I will tell you this, it will be one of Greene or Dobson. (They'll) both be on the ice tomorrow and we'll make the decision there."

Despite having five defensemen, the Islanders limited the Panthers to five shots on goal in the third period in Game 1. Scott Mayfield led New York in ice time (24:31).

"Our depth, we have 10 (defensemen) here right now that can all play," Mayfield said. "You didn't see a lot of [Hickey] or [Aho] during the season, but we all know they can play and that's kind of one of the positives we have back here. It's kind of that next-man-up mentality. If (Boychuk's) not able to go, I think we have guys that can fill in pretty quickly." -- Brian Compton

Vancouver Canucks

Coach Travis Green said there could be changes at forward when the Canucks play the Minnesota Wild in Game 2 of the Qualifiers at Rogers Place on Tuesday (10:45 p.m. ET; USA, NHL.TV, SN, FS-N, FS-WI).

Among the options are Jake Virtanen, Loui Eriksson and Zack MacEwen. Each were healthy scratches for Game 1, a 3-0 loss in Edmonton, the hub city for the Western Conference, on Sunday.

"I don't think it's just our bottom-six (forwards)," Green said. "I thought our top six didn't get a lot of offense either and we are considering everything. Is there a chance we'll make a change? For sure."

Vancouver had 28 shots on goal but created few dangerous scoring chances in close and drew one penalty.

"We've got to find a way to get our shots through and have traffic at the net and score those playoff-type goals," forward J.T. Miller said. -- Kevin Woodley