DETROIT --When the Red Wings welcome the Boston Bruins to Little Caesars Arena for their Wednesday night clash (7:30 p.m. face-off), they'll be facing a Bruins team that is a bit banged up.
Similar to what the Red Wings faced at the beginning of season, the Bruins are currently experiencing a plethora of injuries to their defensive corps.
Up next: Boston Bruins
Bruins' blue line ravaged by injuries
© Dave Reginek/Detroit Red Wings
By
Arthur J. Regner @ArthurJRegner / DetroitRedWings.com
Four Bruins defensemen are on injured reserve - Brandon Carlo (upper body), Urho Vaakanainen (concussion), Charlie McAvoy (concussion) and Kevan Miller (hand) - plus Zdeno Chara (left knee) and John Moore (lower body) will not play against the Wings.
Chara is out for at least a month after he injured his left MCL in the first period of a 6-3 loss to the Colorado Avalanche on Nov.14.
Moore flew back to Boston to have his lower-body injury examined, something that flared up during the Bruins' current road trip.
There is some good news for Boston's back end as it appears Miller will make his return to the lineup against the Wings on Wednesday, though it's officially a game-time decision.
McAvoy and Vaakanainen are expected to begin to practice with the team in Detroit on Tuesday but neither will play against the Red Wings.
It should be an interesting game on Thanksgiving Eve at Little Caesars Arena as the Red Wings will try and cash in against the Bruins' thin blue line and turn the tables against their Original Six rival, who recently has had the Wings' number.
Boston is 19-2-1 against Detroit in its last 22 games, though six of those 19 victories were decided in overtime (five) or a shootout (one).
The Skinny:
After 20 games, the Bruins are 11-6-3, which is fourth overall in the Atlantic Division, fifth overall in the Eastern Conference and seventh overall in the NHL. In 11 road games, the Bruins are 4-4-3. Boston's power play is third in the NHL with a success rate of 29.8 percent (20-of-67). On the road, their power play ranks ninth, converting at a 22.6-percent clip (7-of-31). Boston's penalty kill is terrific at home (88.9 percent success rate) and terrible on the road (72.5 percent success rate). They rank 19th overall in the league on the penalty kill. They've been shorthanded 67 times and have surrendered 14 power-play goals for a kill rate of 79.1 percent, but their penalty killing on the road ranks 28th. Boston has given up 11 power-play goals in the 40 times they've been shorthanded away from Boston. The Bruins are 19th in the NHL in scoring, averaging 2.90 goals per game. Boston's goals-against average is 2.45 per game, which ranks third best in the league. In one-goal games, the Bruins are 4-2-1 this season.
The Last Time:
On Oct. 13, the Bruins manhandled the Red Wings, 8-2, in a Saturday afternoon contest at TD Garden. At the time, the Red Wings were besieged with injuries to their back end and the Bruins took full advantage of Detroit's depleted defensive corps. David Pastrnak recorded a hat trick, Jake DeBrusk netted two goals, McAvoy, Anders Bjork and Sean Kuraly chipped in with tallies. Filip Hronek and Dylan Larkin lit the lamp for the Red Wings.
The Forward Corps:
The Bruins have one of the best lines in the NHL with center Patrice Bergeron (9-17-26), right wing David Pastrnak (17-8-25) and left wing pest Brad Marchand (6-15-21). However, Detroit has caught a break because Bergeron will not play against the Wings. On Nov. 16 in Dallas, Bergeron was belted into the boards by the Stars' Radek Faksa and suffered an upper-body injury. He flew back to Boston with Moore to have the injury evaluated by the Bruins' medical staff. Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy told reporters on Monday that Bergeron would not fly to Detroit for Wednesday's game even if the injury is not serious. DeBrusk (8-2-10) moved up to the first line with Pastrnak and Marchand in Saturday's 2-1 win at Arizona. Center David Krejci (2-14-16), has chipped in offensively for Boston, but if Bergeron is out for any extended period, Danton Heinen (2-3-5), Joakim Nordstrom (3-1-4) and Kuraly (1-2-3) will need to pick up their scoring pace.
The Blue Line:
With their back end banged up, the Bruins have relied on a mixture of veterans and youngsters to weather the storm. Livonia native and former MSU Spartans defenseman Torey Krug (0-6-6) leads the Bruins in ice time, averaging 22:07 per game. Former Michigan Wolverines defenseman Steve Kampfer (0-1-0) has stabilized the third pair on the back end and Matt Grzelcyk (1-7-8) leads the blueliners in scoring. With Miller expected to return against the Wings, one of three youngsters -- Jeremy Lauzon (1-0-1), Colton Clifton (0-0-0) or Jakob Zboril (0-0-0) -- will be a healthy scratch.
The Net:
Tuukka Rask is the Bruins' No. 1 goalie but he has had a spotty year. Rask took a brief leave of absence recently and last Friday, Rask made his first start since his return and played extremely well in a 1-0 overtime loss to Dallas, making 36 saves. Cassidy also told reporters on Monday that Rask will start versus the Red Wings. Rask is 4-4-1 with a 2.78 goals-against average and .912 save percentage. Jaroslav Halak is the backup and has really picked up the slack. He is 7-2-2 with a 2.07 goals-against average, a .935 save percentage and two shutouts.
The Burning Question:Boston is certainly a good team, but if Rask's struggles continue, can Halak maintain his exceptional play as Boston's de facto No. 1 netminder?
The Series:
Wednesday will be the 601st meeting between the Red Wings and Bruins and the 300th contest in Detroit. The Wings are 255-244-95-6 against the Bruins. At home, Detroit is 161-83-52-3 and in Boston, the Red Wings' record is 94-161-43-3.
