In this latest edition of Boston Bruins News & Rumors, the Bruins have placed a handful of players on waivers today (Oct. 3). Meanwhile, after multiple impressive preseason games, Matthew Poitras will once again be in the lineup for the Bruins in their contest against the Washington Capitals. Lastly, Zboril, who was injured earlier this preseason, is also set to return for the Bruins against the Capitals. Let’s discuss all of this in today’s (Oct. 3) Bruins News & Rumors column.
Bruins Place 5 Players On Waivers
The Bruins have trimmed down their roster noticeably, as they have placed Dan Renouf, Reilly Walsh, Alec Regula, Anthony Richard, and Parker Wotherspoon on waivers. These five were not expected to make the NHL squad, but now they will need to clear waivers before joining the Providence Bruins.
Renouf played in just one game for Boston last season and primarily was with Providence. Assuming he clears, he will once again be a notable part of the AHL squad’s defensive group.
Walsh, a Massachusetts native, was acquired by the Bruins during the offseason. The 24-year-old played in his first NHL game last season with the New Jersey Devils, where he had an assist.
Regula, 23, was acquired by the Bruins in the Taylor Hall/Nick Foligno trade with the Chicago Blackhawks this offseason. The 6-foot-4 right-shot defenseman has 22 games of NHL experience on his resume, posting one goal and a minus-5 rating.
Related: Bruins News & Rumors: Chiasson, DiPietro, Zboril & Heinen
Richard, 26, got into some NHL action last season with the Montreal Canadiens, scoring three goals and adding two assists in 13 games. Teams looking to add some forward depth could consider taking a flier on him.
As for Wotherspoon, he played his first 12 NHL career games last season with the New York Islanders, recording an assist and a plus-5 rating. He also had 12 points in 27 AHL games with the Bridgeport Islanders.
Poitras Back In for the Bruins
As we get closer to the regular season, Poitras is notably still with the NHL team. The 2022 second-round pick is set to play against the Capitals, centering captain Brad Marchand and winger Trent Frederic on the first line. This will be Poitras’ fourth preseason appearance, and he will be looking to make some noise again.
Poitras, 19, has been one of the Bruins’ top standouts this preseason, and hype surrounding the kid is naturally starting to increase. If the youngster can put together another excellent performance against the Capitals, it surely should help his chances of making their opening night roster.
Although the Bruins are expected to start the season with Pavel Zacha and Charlie Coyle as their top two centers, Poitras is making a case to be in the Bruins’ top nine. We will need to wait and see if he makes a big impact against the Capitals from here.
Zboril Returning to Action
After briefly being sidelined, Zboril is set to return to the Bruins’ lineup against the Capitals, slotting on the second pairing with Matt Grzelcyk. This is good news for the 2015 first-round pick, as he will now get the chance to get into more game action before the start of the regular season.
Zboril, 26, will be looking to maintain an NHL roster spot from here. Defensemen like Mason Lohrei and Ian Mitchell are also candidates to make the NHL squad, so Zboril will need to put up some strong performances to increase his chances of being the club’s seventh defenseman.
As an extra defenseman for the Bruins last season, Zboril appeared in 22 games, posting one goal, three assists, and a minus-1 rating. It was a fairly underwhelming season for him, but a new year offers a clean slate, and he will need to take advantage of it.
