Need to Know: Poitras ‘Very Close’ to Return to Lineup

BOSTON – After missing the first two games of the regular season with an undisclosed injury, Matt Poitras could be back in the lineup when the Bruins host the Los Angeles Kings in a Saturday matinee at TD Garden.

“He’s very close, he’s progressing the right way. I’m gonna say he’s a possibility [Saturday]. We’ve just got to see how he responds later today,” coach Jim Montgomery said following Friday’s practice at Warrior Ice Arena.

Poitras, who has not suited up since the B’s final preseason contest on Oct. 1, was a full participant in the session, centering Trent Frederic and Justin Brazeau on Boston’s third line.

“I’m really excited,” said Poitras. “Hopefully I get in the lineup and get to play. It’s been a long time since I played a game that’s meaningful. The preseason games mean something, you want to try to get ready for the season but now it really means something. I just want to get out there and play.”

The 20-year-old has not played in a regular season game since Jan. 25, his rookie season cut short by a shoulder injury that required surgery.

“It’s frustrating,” said Poitras. “You come into camp and you don’t really think about [getting hurt again]. You just want to stay healthy and make the team. Getting hurt like that, just need to not put myself in positions to get hurt and just try and stay healthy.”

Poitras finished his first NHL campaign with 15 points (5 goals, 10 assists) in 33 games and is hoping that an offseason of training and rehabilitation will put him in position for an even better sophomore season.

“I just felt better and better as the preseason went along. Being a little bit older and having those first 30 games under my belt, confidence grows and grows and get more comfortable holding onto pucks and trying to make plays,” said Poitras.

“I feel stronger, faster. I’ll never be one of the strongest guys out there just because I’m not the biggest guy. But I feel comfortable going into the corner with just about anybody.”

And if he’s playing with Frederic and Brazeau, he knows he’ll have plenty of brawn on his side.

“We got a lot of big boys on this team, especially if I’m playing with Freddy and Braz,” said Poitras. “Those guys can get in the corners, they’re big guys who hold onto pucks. For me it’s just finding open ice. I’m not gonna shy away from the corners either. It’s nice to have some big boys out here.”

Fourth Line Shines

Speaking of big boys, the Bruins’ new-look fourth line of Johnny Beecher (6-3, 216 pounds), Mark Kastelic (6-4, 226), and Cole Koepke (6-1, 203) combined for six points in a stellar home-opener showing on Thursday night at TD Garden.

“I think we’ve just built a lot of chemistry over practice, and we all have the same idea of how we wanna play. We want to play fast and we want to play hard and try to wear the other team down. I think just as a whole we did that really well together and it’s been going well for us,” said Koepke, who notched a career-high three points (goal, two assists), which matched his career total (in 26 games with Tampa) heading into the game.

Kastelic, meanwhile, tallied two goals in his TD Garden debut. The 25-year-old, acquired in the trade that sent Linus Ullmark to Ottawa over the summer, tied the game at 2 with a snipe from the top of the slot at 13:24 of the first, before adding an important insurance tally that banked in off Montreal goalie Cayden Primeau with four minutes left to put Boston up, 6-4.

“It feels really good,” said Kastelic. “I mean, it just feels good to contribute to the team's success and getting on the score sheet is always a good feeling. And it was really fun playing with my line tonight, and I think we're starting to build our games together and get more comfortable with each other, so it’s starting to pay off.”

The Arizona native said that the trio’s goal has been to create as much havoc as possible.

“I think it's a huge focus,” said Kastelic, whose grandfather Pat Stapleton played for the Bruins from 1961-63. “I think we play with a lot of speed, and we all [have] pretty good size. So, if we can get it to the net, cause some chaos, a lot of times, good things will happen.”

Montgomery also complimented the offseason work of Beecher, who has shown marked improvement in his second year with the big club.

“I think Johnny Beecher’s a great example of how important it is to have a really good summer and then follow it with a really good camp, because his camp, we thought, as a group, management…he’s really been on top of his game,” said Montgomery. “He’s added layers to his game. He’s more explosive, he’s stronger, his stamina is better, he’s hanging onto pucks is vastly improved, and you see his confidence now has taken off.

“What he adds to that group and line as a whole is their ability to get to the net and beat people 1-on-1, taking pucks to hard offensive areas. Not only does it create excitement in the building, but it’s rebounds, goals, power plays are gonna come from it.”

Friday’s Practice Lineup

FORWARDS

Pavel Zacha – Elias Lindholm – David Pastrnak

Brad Marchand – Charlie Coyle – Morgan Geekie

Trent Frederic – Matt Poitras – Justin Brazeau

Johnny Beecher – Mark Kastelic – Cole Koepke

Riley Tufte – Tyler Johnson – Max Jones

DEFENSEMEN

Nikita Zadorov – Charlie McAvoy

Hampus Lindholm – Brandon Carlo

Mason Lohrei – Andrew Peeke

Parker Wotherspoon – Ian Mitchell

GOALIES

Jeremy Swayman

Joonas Korpisalo