Bjork, Krejci Nearing Returns as B's Hit the Road

BOSTON - It appears the Bruins are inching closer to a light at the end of the injury tunnel - for now, anyways.
Boston's brutal injury luck so far this season has made the first two months a difficult stretch. But the B's have survived, and at times thrived - as head coach Bruce Cassidy said this week - as they sit just a point out of a playoff spot through 23 games. It is an impressive position to be in considering only seven players have suited up for every game this season.

The Bruins have won five of six games and could have a much healthier lineup by the end of their two-game swing to Philadelphia and Nashville.
David Krejci (upper body, burgundy non-contact) and Anders Bjork joined the full group for practice on Friday morning, while Jake DeBrusk (upper body) and Adam McQuaid (broken fibula) skated before practice.
Bjork and Krejci have been ruled day-to-day and are "possibilities" to play on Saturday in Philadelphia. DeBrusk has been ruled out for the Flyers tilt, but will travel with the team and is "feeling better" according to Cassidy. McQuaid is in the sixth week of his expected eight-week recovery.
"This is probably the closest in a long time," Cassidy said of being at full strength. "Until we get through the games, we're not there yet. But it's a good problem to have.
"[Bjork] is looking like a possibility tomorrow. Krech felt better today. If he wakes up tomorrow and feels OK he could potentially play. I think Bjork's the closest."

Splitting the Crease

Cassidy said the plan is for the team's goalies to split the games on the trip with Tuukka Rask getting the start in Philadelphia and Anton Khudobin getting the nod in Nashville. Rask has started the last two games, a loss against Edmonton and a win over the Lightning.
"Doby we don't want to sit too long, we've kind of documented why we went with Tuukka and not Doby for two consecutive," said Cassidy. "One start each and then we'll re-assess."

Plenty of Chatter

In addition to his contributions on the ice, David Backes has always been known for his leadership on the bench and in the dressing room. According to Cassidy, that was evident during the veteran forward's return to the lineup on Wednesday night.
"What I do notice is David Backes. I think every game we've played with him we've gotten points and there's a reason," said Cassidy. "He's good at saying the right thing at the right time on the bench. It's good for me because I can be vocal if there's no one around me vocal.
"Sometimes that's not always a good thing, the players want some peace and quiet...you'd rather the players have the energy on the bench."

Winter Wonderland

Bjork was sidelined with an injury when the announcement was made that the Bruins and Blackhawks would play the 2019 Winter Classic at Notre Dame Stadium. So with the winger back on the ice and available to the media, the former Fighting Irish star was able to express his excitement for the event.
"Extremely excited," said Bjork, who left the school after his junior season last spring. "Something I didn't expect at all. Pretty crazy to realize that it's going to happen. There are a lot of people that are really excited. It's going to be a fantastic event.
"Me and my teammates had talked about it. When we were there, we kind of hoped they would host something there so we could go watch, but I never really thought about playing at that stadium. Pretty cool to think about."

Opposing View

The Bruins will take on the Philadelphia Flyers for the first time this season on Saturday afternoon. The Flyers are in the midst of a difficult stretch, having lost nine straight games - five of which have come in overtime or a shootout.
"That's part of their streak, there's four shootout losses, overtime, they've been close to winning, one play away on a lot of those," said Cassidy. "I can't speak to their whole record, simply because we haven't seen them since preseason. Your focus doesn't go on them until very recently."
Despite the team's struggles, Philadelphia's top line is among the best in the NHL. Claude Giroux (11-17-28), Jakub Voracek (7-23-30), and Sean Couturier (14-12-26) are all within the league's top 20 scoring leaders.
"I know that their top line is doing a lot of their scoring, they've got a young defense that is playing well…try to keep that top line off the scoresheet which is a tall [task]," said Cassidy.

Friday's Practice Lines

Brad Marchand - Patrice Bergeron - David Pastrnak
Danton Heinen - Riley Nash - David Backes
Frank Vatrano - Ryan Spooner - Matt Beleskey/Anders Bjork
Tim Schaller - Sean Kuraly - Noel Acciari
Zdeno Chara - Charlie McAvoy
Torey Krug - Brandon Carlo
Matt Grzelcyk - Kevan Miller
Paul Postma
Tuukka Rask
Anton Khudobin