Ice Chips: Bruins shuffle defence pairs, JVR to draw in for Game 3
Published
Keep updated on all the injury news and roster updates from around the NHL with daily Ice Chips.
Boston Bruins
After the Bruins ruled defenceman Andrew Peeke week-to-week on Tuesday, the team shuffled their defence pairings in Wednesday's morning skate, according to Fluto Shinzawa of The Athletic.
Shinzawa adds that at forward, former Toronto Maple Leaf James van Riemsdyk appears set to make his series debut, with Jakub Lauko coming out. van Riemsdyk had 11 goals and 38 points in 71 games during the regular season. Lauko does not have a point through two games against the Leafs.
The Bruins had three new pairings in their top-six, with recently recalled defenceman Mason Lohrei skating with Charlie McAvoy, Hampus Lindholm paired with Brandon Carlo and Parker Wotherspoon alongside Kevin Shattenkirk. Wotherspoon did not play in either of the first two games of the series.
Matt Grzelcyk, who saw 17:04 of ice time in Game 1 and 18:30 in Game 2, skated as part of the extra pairing with Derek Forbort.
In Game 2, Lindholm opened with McAvoy, Grzelcyk with Carlo and Peeke with Shattenkirk.
Lohrei appeared in 41 games during the regular season, posting four goals and 13 points while averaging 16:57 of ice time. Wotherspoon also played in 41 games, posting eight assists while averaging 17:43.
Grzelcyk had two goals and 11 points in 63 games during the season, averaging 17:35 per game. He went without a point in Games 1 and 2 against Toronto.
Toronto Maple Leafs
Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe said Wednesday morning that "there's a chance" that forward William Nylander will play in Game 3 against the Boston Bruins.
Nylander skated on his usual third line with Calle Jarnkrok and Pontus Holmberg, but stuck around for extra work after with projected scratch Noah Gregor, indicating he is likely to miss his third straight playoff game.
Keefe also told reporters Nylander's status will depend on how he responds to the extra work he did.
The Maple Leafs will have star forward Auston Matthews for Game 3 as Keefe confirmed he is good to go after missing Wednesday's morning skate.
Nick Robertson, who skated with Jarnkrok and Holmberg in Games 1 and 2, took Matthews' spot at centre on the top line in the skate, but did not stay out late after the session.
Here were Toronto's full lines:
Bertuzzi - Robertson - Domi
Knies - Tavares - Marner
Jarnkrok - Holmberg - Nylander
Dewar - Kampf - Reaves
Gregor
Rielly - Lyubushkin
Benoit - McCabe
Edmundson - Liljegren
Giordano - Brodie
Samsonov (starts)
Woll
Jones
Matthews showed no indication of injury in Game 2, scoring the go-ahead goal in the third period as the Maple Leafs evened the series at one game apiece with a 3-2 win.
Keefe has been coy with Nylander's status all throughout the first-round series as the winger has remained sidelined. Keefe saying once again Tuesday that Nylander was a "possibility" for Game 3. He used the same description ahead of Game 1.
"Obviously no update today, because not much happening for us here today except for getting ready to travel. But he's a possibility for us tomorrow, I guess, is all we would say," Keefe said.
After playing all 82 regular season games, Nylander missed his second straight contest Monday night as the Maple Leafs squeaked out a 3-2 Game 2 victory to even the series at one game apiece.
Keefe and the Leafs have not disclosed the type of injury Nylander is dealing with and have not issued any sort of indication for when he could return to game action. Nylander skated at both Sunday's optional and during Monday's morning skate, but did not take line rushes and stayed out for extra work with the Leafs' projected scratches.
The 27-year-old Swede had 40 goals and 58 assists for a career-best 98 points during the regular season without missing a game. Nylander has 17 goals and 40 points in 50 career playoff games, including 14 games against the Bruins.
After playing Game 3 Wednesday evening at Scotiabank Arena, the two teams will continue their series with Game 4 Saturday evening.
Los Angeles Kings
The Kings will go back to Cam Talbot in net for Wednesday's Game 2 of their opening-round series against the Edmonton Oilers, head coach Jim Hiller told reporters.
Talbot stopped 38 of the 44 shots he faced in the series opener as the Kings lost 7-4.
He had a .913 save percentage and 2.50 goals-against average in 54 outings during the regular season.
New York Islanders
Head coach Patrick Roy told reporters Wednesday Ilya Sorokin will start in net for Game 3 of their first-round series against the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday.
Semyon Varlamov started the first two games of the series, both losses, allowing a total of six goals on 69 shots on goal. Varlamov allowed four goals on 38 shots in New York's 5-3 Game 2 defeat.
Sorokin, 28, had a .908 save percentage and 3.01 goals-against average in 56 games during the regular season for the Isles.
Vegas Golden Knights
Forward Nicolas Hague is day-to-day with a lower-body injury and will miss Wednesday's Game 2 against the Dallas Stars, head coach Bruce Cassidy told reporters.
Hague played 15:41 in Game 1, managing one shot on goal with four hits.
The 25-year-old had two goals and 10 assists in 73 games during the regular season, his fifth with Vegas.