In this latest edition of Boston Bruins News & Rumors, top prospect Matthew Poitras potted his first two NHL goals against the Anaheim Ducks. In other news, after being scratched for being late to a team meeting, Jake DeBrusk had a nice response game against the Ducks. Lastly, the injury bug has hit the Bruins, as both Milan Lucic and Derek Forbort are sidelined. Let’s discuss all of this in today’s (Oct. 23) Bruins News & Rumors column.
Poitras Scores First NHL Goals
Heading into the Bruins’ contest against the Ducks, Poitras had one assist in four games to start the season. Although his production was fairly low at that point, signs were there that he would start making a bigger impact offensively. Against the Ducks, he did just that, posting two third-period goals and helping lead the Bruins to their fifth straight win.
After carrying the Bruins to victory with his two-goal night, Poitras certainly helped his chances of sticking with the Bruins past his nine-game window. He, along with Charlie Coyle, currently leads all Bruins centers in points with three. With the Bruins needing desperate help down the middle, seeing Poitras pick up his first multi-goal game was simply excellent.
Poitras is continuing to show that he can be a potential X-factor for the Bruins this season. Now, it is going to be a lot of fun to see if he can continue making a difference for Boston offensively from here.
DeBrusk Responds to Scratch With Good Game
DeBrusk made headlines for all the wrong reasons before the Bruins’ game against the Los Angeles Kings. The 2015 first-round pick was late for a team meeting, and head coach Jim Montgomery scratched him. DeBrusk seemed to get the message, as he had a strong performance against the Ducks. He posted his first assist of the season and immediately formed chemistry with Poitras and Morgan Geekie in their newly formed trio.
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The Bruins are going to need more of this kind of play from DeBrusk as the year rolls on. He showed last season that he can be a real difference-maker in a top-six role, posting 27 goals and 50 points in 64 games. If he keeps creating chances and playing with high energy like he did against the Ducks, things should turn around quickly for the seven-year veteran.
Lucic & Forbort Sidelined
The Bruins had two regulars missing from their lineup against the Ducks, as Lucic and Forbort sat out due to injury. Forbort is expected to be out day-to-day due to an undisclosed injury, while Lucic participated in warmups but left limping after taking one lap.
Forbort, 31, had his best game of the season against the Kings on Oct. 22, as he had a two-assist night and sported a plus-3 rating. Thus, the timing of this injury is less than ideal, but the Bruins handled themselves fine without the 6-foot-4 defenseman in their lineup against Anaheim.
As for Lucic, he also made an impact against the Kings, as he had an assist against his former club. Before the game against Anaheim, Montgomery noted that an undisclosed forward could be out day-to-day and was a game-time decision, and now we know that the player was Lucic. The Vancouver native was hit by a puck in the ankle against the Kings. We will need to wait for more specific information on Lucic’s condition from here.