Need to Know: Bruins vs. Flyers

BOSTON – Brad Marchand, Charlie McAvoy, and David Pastrnak will be among the Bruins making their preseason debuts on Friday night when the Black & Gold host the Philadelphia Flyers at TD Garden.

Here’s everything you need to know for the 7 p.m. ET puck drop on NESN+ and 98.5 The Sports Hub:

Lohrei, McAvoy Paired Up

Mason Lohrei will play in his second consecutive preseason contest, skating alongside Charlie McAvoy on the B’s top defense pairing. The 22-year-old played upwards of 25 minutes while paired with Brandon Carlo on Tuesday night in Buffalo.

“I mean, he's one of the best defensemen in the NHL, so it's pretty cool to just be his partner and learn from it. I'm excited for that,” said Lohrei, who will also get the chance to play in front of the TD Garden crowd for the very first time.

“I'm just more excited than anything – I watched the game on Sunday just on TV, but it was packed in there and the guys that played said that it was an amazing atmosphere,” added the blue liner. “I'm just excited to be out there for the first time. I'm pumped for that.”

Lohrei said that the feedback from the coaching staff thus far has focused on him playing quickly and with physicality.

“I just take it day by day,” said Lohrei. “Getting that [first game] under my belt obviously helps and just learn from that and go over the film and just try and improve and be better in this game than I was in that game.

“I think I've always just kind of tried to have that mindset and work on having that mindset of next play, no matter what happens. Whether it's the highest of highs or lowest of the lows, you always go out there the next shift and try to make a play.”

Marchand has been impressed with Lohrei dating back to summer workouts at Warrior Ice Arena.

“Skated with him this summer and I was really impressed with his abilities,” said Marchand. “He skates very well, big kid, very poised with the puck. He’s very confident with the puck, not scared to try different things. I’d like to see more of him in an NHL setting where he’s competing against NHL players.”

Marchand, Poitras Up Top

Boston’s captain will get into his first exhibition action against the Flyers, skating alongside youngster Matthew Poitras and familiar face Danton Heinen. Bruins assistant coach Joe Sacco has been intrigued by Poitras’ camp performance and is eager to see how he performs alongside the B’s top left winger.

“He’s played well,” said Sacco. “He seems to be competitive, he’s around the puck quite a bit and when he gets the puck he makes good decisions with it. It seems like the hockey IG is fairly high there. Another game for him under his belt tonight against what will probably be a little better lineup than we saw the first game at home. We’ll see where he’s at.”

Sacco added that playing with a player of Marchand’s caliber will, no doubt, help Poitras along.

“He’s got, obviously, a real good veteran winger on his line,” said Sacco. “Should help him settle in a bit to the game. We just want to let these kids play and give them an opportunity…there’s gonna be mistakes that happen, but we want to see what else they can do after the mistake. How do you respond when something goes bad?”

Wait, There’s More

• Sacco on centerman John Farinacci, who will make his preseason debut centering A.J. Greer and Jakub Lauko. The Harvard product, signed to a two-year, entry-level deal in August, will be one of Sacco’s penalty killers against the Flyers. “We’ve only seen him practice to this point,” said Sacco. “In training camp, he’s made progression every day. I think he started out a little bit slow but each day he’s gotten a little bit better. Tonight, will be a good opportunity for him to show management, coaches, everybody, what he can do in a game. This is gonna be a real good test for him…we’ll get a better read on his game tonight.”
• Sacco on 26-year-old forward Anthony Richard, who played 13 games for Montreal last season and will skate with Pavel Zacha and David Pastrnak on Friday night. “Speed, his skating ability…he’s quick, he gets to puck quick. He has separation in his game. I think the first preseason game he had two quality scoring chances. Both came from his ability to separate from the defending team. He got in alone on both tries and had two really good looks. To me, that’s the biggest thing that jumps out is his speed.”

Friday’s Projected Lineup

FORWARDS

Brad Marchand – Matthew Poitras – Danton Heinen

Anthony Richard – Pavel Zacha – David Pastrnak

Brett Harrison – Georgii Merkulov – Alex Chiasson

A.J. Greer – John Farinacci – Jakub Lauko

DEFNESEMEN

Mason Lohrei – Charlie McAvoy

Hampus Lindholm – Kevin Shattenkirk

Parker Wotherspoon – Reilly Walsh

GOALIES

Linus Ullmark/Kyle Keyser