Need to Know: Bruins at Oilers

EDMONTON, Alberta – After a rocky seven-game homestand, the Bruins are hitting the road for a four-game trip out West that begins on Wednesday night against the Edmonton Oilers at Rogers Place. Boston, which posted a disappointing 2-3-2 record during the lengthy home stretch, will be aiming to, once again, build some momentum after its shootout win over Dallas on Monday afternoon.

“I think the boys are excited,” said coach Jim Montgomery. “There was a lot of jump for a morning skate, most I’ve seen in a while. The guys are excited to be on the road together.”

Despite their recent dip following the All-Star break, the Bruins are trying to remain focused on upholding the standard they have set that has allowed them to have success for such an extended period.

“You go through waves and flows of a season,” said Edmonton native Jake DeBrusk. “You try to stay consistent every day with your preparation and your approach and the belief. You’ve got to believe in the room that you have the horses to run. Sometimes the results don’t come. This game is cruel. It can humble you pretty quickly. But at the same time, everyone’s here for a reason.

“I think the biggest thing here is our morals, our standard…when you’re inside the room, whether things are going well or they aren’t, we try to keep the same intensity in practice…I think that’s been a huge reason why the Bruins have been successful.

"We’ve been tested on the homestand. It was nice to get the win last game and now we’re looking forward.”

Here’s everything else you need to know ahead of the 10 p.m. ET puck drop on TNT and 98.5 The Sports Hub:

Lindholm Sidelined, Lohrei Recalled

The Bruins will be without defenseman Hampus Lindholm, who was injured during the third period of Boston’s win on Monday. The blue liner is considered “week-to-week” and will not be available for the trip, according to Montgomery.

“No [surgery],” said Montgomery. “Not even an option.”

With Lindholm sidelined, Mason Lohrei was recalled from Providence for his third stint with the big club this season. The rookie blue liner has posted three goals and three assists in 27 games with Boston.

“Both times he’s come up and played for us, he’s been really good coming up from Providence,” said Montgomery. “Our expectations is we know what he is, he’s a good hockey player. He’s someone that has helped us win a lot of hockey games this year and we expect him to do that again.”

Lohrei said that his confidence has certainly grown with each recall and that this time around, his comfort level will be much higher than it was earlier in the season.

“I’ve been here a good amount this year, so I’ve had the luxury of working with [the coaches] all year,” said Lohrei. “I know what they expect…confidence is the biggest thing. The only way to gain that is by being at the [NHL] level and playing well and continuing to gain trust from the coaches. With that, you get more trust in yourself too. I’m looking to continue to do that and build.

“You’re super nervous going into your first game, playing Toronto, getting thrown into the fire. But I think just going out there and playing freely, a couple shifts in, I was like, ‘Alright, I fit in out here. I can make plays out here.’ It’s just hockey, that’s the only way you can think about it.”

The 23-year-old added that during his most-recent stint with the P-Bruins over the last month, his focus has been on shoring up his overall game.

“Just moving pucks quick and defending hard, closing fast,” said Lohrei, who had a goal and six assists in seven games with Providence since Jan. 21. “Just go down there and play with confidence and do all the things that I know how to do and try to do the same thing up here.”

Lohrei recently missed roughly two weeks after suffering a cut on his left leg that required 20 stitches.

“Close one in Charlotte,” said Lohrei. “Got kicked…it could’ve been worse.”

Opposing View

After a slow start that led to the dismissal of coach Jay Woodcroft, the Oilers have surged into a playoff spot under Kris Knoblauch, winning 16 straight from Dec. 21-Jan. 27. Since then, the Oilers are 4-3-0 coming out of the All-Star break, including two straight wins entering Wednesday’s matchup against the Bruins.

Overall, Edmonton is 33-18-1 with 67 points on the season, putting them one point clear of Los Angeles for third place in the Pacific Division.

“They’re dynamic, they’re fast, they’re playing great offense and great defense, good goaltending,” said Montgomery. “An elite team like everybody expected at the beginning of the year.”

Unsurprisingly, Connor McDavid paces the Oilers with 83 points (21 goals, 62 assists) in 50 games this season. Zach Hyman leads the team with 33 goals.

Leon Draisaitl (27-41—68) and Evan Bouchard (14-39—53) have also hit the 50-point plateau, while Ryan Nugent-Hopkins has 49 points (15 goals, 34 assists) in 52 games. Evander Kane has 21 goals and 35 points.

Goalie Stuart Skinner is expected to start in net. He is 25-12-1 with a 2.57 goals against average and .906 save percentage.

Wednesday’s Projected Lineup

FORWARDS

Brad Marchand – Charlie Coyle – Danton Heinen

Jake DeBrusk – Pavel Zacha – David Pastrnak

James van Riemsdyk – Morgan Geekie – Anthony Richard

Trent Frederic – Jesper Boqvist – Justin Brazeau

DEFENSEMEN

Matt Grzelcyk – Charlie McAvoy

Mason Lohrei – Brandon Carlo

Derek Forbort – Parker Wotherspoon

GOALIES

Jeremy Swayman

Linus Ullmark