With Krejci and Miller sidelined, Cassidy will turn to youngsters Jack Studnicka and Urho Vaakanainen to fill the void. Vaakanainen will be making his season debut, while Studnicka returns to the big club after playing two games with the Providence Bruins.
Studnicka played six games with the big club before he was injured on Jan. 28 against the Pittsburgh Penguins. The 22-year-old will center Anders Bjork and Jake DeBrusk.
"That is how we practiced today. They looked really good," said Cassidy. "That would knock [Trent Frederic] down with [Sean] Kuraly and [Chris] Wagner. [Patrice Bergeron's] line will stay together. Obviously with Krejci out, we are going to leave [David Pastrnak] up with Bergy and [Brad Marchand].
"That leaves [Nick] Ritchie, [Charlie] Coyle, and [Craig] Smith - we liked [that line] at camp as well. So, not a lot of difference for Coyle and Smith. A big winger. They have had Freddy there most of the time, now they will have Ritchie so guys that can occupy space. We will see how the three younger guys do."
During his previous stint with Boston, Studnicka was playing the wing, mostly alongside Krejci on Boston's second line. But the Ontario native now has a chance to move back to the middle, his natural position, with some speedy wingers alongside.
"He has not played that many games in the middle for us. Who best fits with him?" said Cassidy. "I just like that they all have young legs. Especially in an environment like this where they may be skating into the wind. Maybe that will counter some of Philly's speed coming at you the other way.
"It's a little bit of, the search goes on for the lines and what we are looking for because there is another injury that takes us out of what we had planned to do. A little bit of that is involved."
Studnicka, coming off a season in which he led the P-Bruins in scoring with 49 points in 60 games, impressed during training camp, leading the B's coaching staff to make a decision. With Bergeron, Krejci, Coyle, and Kuraly forming one of the best center groups in the league, there was no room in the middle, leading to Studnicka shifting to the wing in order to remain in Boston.
"We felt he looked good in training camp," said Cassidy. "So, do you put one of the players that you thought was playing well and move his position or do you wait? We put him there and he got injured unfortunately, but he is fine now.
"We always thought if Bergy or Krejci missed some time - typically over the last few years, they have missed a few games here or there - that Jack would get the opportunity to go in there. We felt our team would be strong enough around him."
