Need to Know: Bruins at Sabres

BUFFALO - John Moore has gone through the gamut of emotions over the past seven months. Among the ups and downs the veteran blue liner has experienced: a hip arthroscopy and labral repair, a grueling six-month rehabilitation, a strong preseason showing, a trip through waivers, and a return to the Bruins roster.
To put it simply, it's been quite a ride - one that will culminate on Friday night in Buffalo with his first National Hockey League game since Feb. 26 in New York.

"It's been a journey for sure," said Moore, who will sub in for Connor Clifton on Boston's third defense pair against the Sabres. "I had surgery March 22 in New York on my hip, got out of there on a wheelchair, and here I am playing in an NHL game. Just celebrating that small victory.
"I'm up off the mat and ready to go. I'm excited. I'm proud of myself, proud of my support network - my family, my wife, my kids. A lot of people behind the scenes helped me get back here."
Despite rebounding well from the offseason surgery during the preseason, Moore was placed on waivers along with Chris Wagner on Oct. 9. Both players cleared the following day and, while Wagner was sent to Providence when the Opening Night roster was submitted on Oct. 12, Moore remained with the big club as one of two extra defensemen along with Jakub Zboril.
"We never want to lose an asset," said Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy. "At the end of the day…Johnny never went down. We were gonna keep him here until that needed to be done or until he needed to play if he did clear. Right now, he's getting in early.
"If he hadn't have gone in - if we had cruised along - he may have had to go play some games to get back into it because he missed a lot of time. I thought he did his job in exhibition. Hopefully that translates into a good game tonight for us."
Moore acknowledged that while the 24-hour period following his being placed on waivers was an emotional one, he opted to respond with a positive approach.
"I really had no control over that decision. It's a business decision," said Moore. "I think a step beyond that, I was proud of the way I showed up to camp, proud of the way I competed. I felt that I controlled what I could control…it's definitely a chip on your shoulder for sure and I'll use it as motivation."

The 30-year-old added that he never thought about the potential of being able to start fresh somewhere else and was particularly appreciative of a call he received from Bruins captain Patrice Bergeron shortly after he was placed on waivers.
"Within five minutes, he called me and let me know how much I mean to this group," said Moore, who is now in his fourth season with the Bruins. "He's never going to have to go through something like that, but for him to make you feel like you're wanted, and you're valued here - this group has unfinished business, and we believe in each other. I want to be a part of that."
He will certainly be a part of it on Friday night as he makes his season debut on the right side of Boston's third pairing with Derek Forbort. Cassidy felt that after a shaky defensive performance against the Flyers in Wednesday night's 6-3 loss, he needed to send a bit of a message to the back end.
"I didn't like the way we defended the other night, in terms of keeping the puck out of our net," said Cassidy. "Johnny had a good camp. We gave Cliffy first crack at [the third pairing]. It's just a bit of - we're not putting it all on Cliffy - it's a message that if we don't defend well enough, we'll play other people until we get it right. That's as simple as I can make it."
While Moore will be playing his off side, he is confident he'll be up to the task.
"Since the beginning of camp, I've been taking all my reps on the right side so I do feel really comfortable," said Moore, who mentioned that he has tried to learn from watching blue liners like Ron Hainsey and T.J. Brodie play on their off side.
"The only play that I try and work on extensively on the ice would be a rim release in the offensive zone, gathering that puck on my backhand. Those are quick plays and the transition getting off the backhand onto my forehand is something I really try and work on."

Blidh Gets the Call

Nick Foligno will not play on Friday night due to an upper-body injury suffered in Boston's loss to the Flyers. As a result, Cassidy has had to shuffle his bottom six with Tomas Nosek shifting up to take Foligno's spot as the third-line right wing alongside Jake DeBrusk and Erik Haula and Anton Blidh subbing into the lineup as the fourth-line left wing with Trent Frederic sliding over to play the middle and Karson Kuhlman staying on the right side.
"Move my feet, be hard to play against, bring pucks to the net, hold onto the puck, just try to play simple and not do too much stupid things," Blidh said of his approach against the Sabres. "You've got to find the right line, what can I do and what can't I do? Play physical, hit people, win the puck, stay on them, don't give them that extra second and be hard to play against."
Blidh, who was an unrestricted free agent over the summer, said that despite playing just 38 games with Boston over the past five seasons, he didn't have any real desire to look for opportunities elsewhere.
"First of all, it's a great organization," said the 26-year-old, who was drafted by the Bruins in the sixth round of the 2013 NHL Draft. "I'm just happy to be a part of it for a long time. Even if it's in Providence or up here. I always try to get to work and smile every day, even if I'm not on the roster or in the lineup. Just try to bring the energy every day.
"I've been here for seven years now. I like it every day. It feels like a second home, so why not stay here if I like it."
Cassidy said that for the Sweden native to stay in the Bruins' lineup he'll have to find the right balance when it comes to bringing his physicality and ability to agitate the opponent without ending up in the penalty box.
"He likes to be an agitator, just has to work in a positive fashion," said Cassidy, while adding that Blidh is a good penalty killer with good pace on the forecheck. "He can't be the guy that ends up in the box in those situations. That's something we've talked to him about. If he can put us on the power play by getting other guys off their game, then that's a plus. That's an attribute he has.
"He's done well in the American League. But for him, the trick is to be able to play to the best of his ability with less ice time than he's used to. That's a bit of the challenge for those guys. See if he's up to it."

Opposing View

The Sabres are off to a strong 3-0-0 start - a surprising development for a team that struggled mightily a year ago and remains without Jack Eichel. But Buffalo has banded together to kick off the season with wins over Montreal, Arizona, and Vancouver, scoring five goals in two of those of those contests.
Kyle Okposo, Tage Thompson, and Zemgus Girgensons lead the way with two goals apiece, while Girgensons and former Bruins blue liner Colin Miller (four assists) pace Buffalo with four points each.
Anders Bjork, who was traded from Boston to Buffalo in the Taylor Hall trade last spring, has a goal and a plus-2 rating through three games.
Goaltender Craig Anderson will get the start in goal for the Sabres. The 40-year-old is 2-0-0 with a 1.50 goals against average and .954 save percentage.

Wait, There's More

• Linus Ullmark will make his Bruins debut between the pipes against his former team. Read more about the netminder's return to Buffalo.
• Friday night's game will air exclusively on ESPN+ and Hulu. For more information on how to subscribe, click here.

Friday's Projected Lineup

FORWARDS
Brad Marchand - Patrice Bergeron - David Pastrnak
Taylor Hall - Charlie Coyle - Craig Smith
Jake DeBrusk - Erika Haula - Tomas Nosek
Anton Blidh - Trent Frederic - Karson Kuhlman
DEFENSEMEN
Matt Grzelcyk - Charlie McAvoy
Mike Reilly - Brandon Carlo
Derek Forbort - John Moore
GOALIES
Linus Ullmark
Jeremy Swayman