Boston Bruins Will Be Without Two Top Centers Against Lightning.
The Bruins' forward corps will be shorthanded heading into Sunday's Stadium Series game against the Tampa Bay Lightning, as head coach Marco Sturm announced that both Elias Lindholm and Pavel Zacha won't travel with the team to Florida. This means Boston will likely be without its first and second-line centers on Sunday at Raymond James Stadium.
Lindholm, a key player who has posted 11 goals and 37 points across 43 games this season, suffered an upper-body injury during Tuesday's overtime win over Nashville Predators and missed Thursday's 6-3 win over the Flyers. Zacha was injured in that victory against Philly, as he was caught up high on a hit from Nicolas Deslauriers and did not return midway through the second period.
With both Lindholm and Zacha out, the Bruins will have to rely on other centers to fill the void. Sturm noted that Boston's four centers going into Sunday will likely be Fraser Minten, Marat Khusnutdinov, Matt Poitras, and Sean Kuraly. A line of Minten, Viktor Arvidsson, and Casey Mittelstadt dominated the Flyers on Thursday.
However, losing Lindholm and Zacha is a significant blow to the Bruins' power play unit, where both players are crucial components. Boston's top line and overall structure will be impacted, but Sturm remains confident in his team's ability to overcome the absence of two key players.
"We dealt with it early on this season where we had a lot of injuries," Sturm said. "This time, I feel like it's a little bit different, because they're our number one and two centers. But we have other guys who can step up." The Bruins' power play percentage is currently fourth in the NHL at 26.8 percent.
Sturm acknowledged that the team will need to adapt without Lindholm and Zacha, but he expressed confidence in his team's ability to "hang with everyone" despite some injuries. With their current form and structure, the Bruins are well-equipped to overcome this setback and compete against the Lightning.
The Bruins' forward corps will be shorthanded heading into Sunday's Stadium Series game against the Tampa Bay Lightning, as head coach Marco Sturm announced that both Elias Lindholm and Pavel Zacha won't travel with the team to Florida. This means Boston will likely be without its first and second-line centers on Sunday at Raymond James Stadium.
Lindholm, a key player who has posted 11 goals and 37 points across 43 games this season, suffered an upper-body injury during Tuesday's overtime win over Nashville Predators and missed Thursday's 6-3 win over the Flyers. Zacha was injured in that victory against Philly, as he was caught up high on a hit from Nicolas Deslauriers and did not return midway through the second period.
With both Lindholm and Zacha out, the Bruins will have to rely on other centers to fill the void. Sturm noted that Boston's four centers going into Sunday will likely be Fraser Minten, Marat Khusnutdinov, Matt Poitras, and Sean Kuraly. A line of Minten, Viktor Arvidsson, and Casey Mittelstadt dominated the Flyers on Thursday.
However, losing Lindholm and Zacha is a significant blow to the Bruins' power play unit, where both players are crucial components. Boston's top line and overall structure will be impacted, but Sturm remains confident in his team's ability to overcome the absence of two key players.
"We dealt with it early on this season where we had a lot of injuries," Sturm said. "This time, I feel like it's a little bit different, because they're our number one and two centers. But we have other guys who can step up." The Bruins' power play percentage is currently fourth in the NHL at 26.8 percent.
Sturm acknowledged that the team will need to adapt without Lindholm and Zacha, but he expressed confidence in his team's ability to "hang with everyone" despite some injuries. With their current form and structure, the Bruins are well-equipped to overcome this setback and compete against the Lightning.
, losing 2 of their top centers is huge! but, gotta give coach sturm credit, he's right, they've dealt with injuries early on and still been killing it 
. and, yeah, fraser minten & co might not be the most dynamic line, but they can hold it down 
. the power play unit will miss those 2 centers tho... but, 26.8% is crazy high 
, i think they can still hang with the lightnin' on sunday 
! let's see how they adjust & perform 
This is gonna be a tough one for the Bruins, gotta feel bad 4 those two centers who got injured 
. But let's see how they do w/out Lindholm & Zacha, that power play is gonna be key 
️...
. It's gonna be a close game, but I'm thinking Boston might just pull it off 
️!
I mean, can't teams just catch a break for once? The Bruins are already struggling without some key players and now they're losing Lindholm and Zacha for the Stadium Series game? That's like getting punched in the gut twice. 
But, you know what? Marco Sturm is right - his team has been through tough times before and they've always managed to come out on top. It's just a shame that it has to happen at a time when the Bruins are already struggling to find their footing... 
ughhh i cant even right now 
how are they gonna even compete against the lightning with only 3 other centers? 
it's not just about the power play unit too, their whole structure is gonna get messsed up 
its a big blow for the Bruins losing 2 of their best centers Elias Lindholm & Pavel Zacha. They were like the 1st & 2nd line centers for them. Now they gotta rely on other centers Fraser Minten, Marat Khusnutdinov & Matt Poitras to fill the void. Hopefully they can step up & make a difference 
so what's up with boston having two top centers out and still managing to cruise? like they're just gonna fill in the spots w/ whoevah? Fraser Minten or whoever, is it even a good look? 
gotta say i think this is gonna be an interesting game against the lightning 
. However, head coach Marco Sturm's optimism is understandable, considering the Bruins' overall form and structure 
... two of their top centers out is a big deal. gotta rely on some scrub centers like Minten and Kuraly... hope Sturm's team can adapt quickly or they'll be facing a long night 
.
still got faith in coach sturm though 
he's gonna get his team to hang with the best of them 
gotta give it up for the backup centers tho