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Bruins d-man Charlie McAvoy ‘questionable’ for 2019 Winter Classic

Charlie McAvoy needs to get a good practice under his belt or it’s no Winter Classic for him.

EDMONTON, AB – OCTOBER 18: Charlie McAvoy #73 of the Boston Bruins skates against the Edmonton Oilers at Rogers Place on October 18, 2018 in Edmonton, Canada. (Photo by Codie McLachlan/Getty Images)

Codie McLachlan/Getty Images

Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy needs to get a good practice under his belt if he's to play to in Tuesday's 2019 NHL Winter Classic at Notre Dame Stadium, Bruins head coach Bruce Cassidy explained Sunday.

"If he doesn't practice [Monday], it doesn't look good," Cassidy said of McAvoy's availability.

Injured on a blocked shot in last Sunday's 5-3 loss to the Hurricanes, McAvoy has missed the last two games to injury, and was placed on the injured reserved retroactive to last week. That made the New Year's Day outdoor meeting with the Chicago Blackhawks a projected return date for the 21-year-old defender in what has been an injury-riddled campaign to date.

Active for the first seven games of the season, McAvoy would tell to the Bruins he didn't feel well following an Oct. 18 loss to the Oilers and miss the following 20 games with a concussion. Returning to action on Dec. 6 against the Lightning, McAvoy would suit up for another 10 games, recording five assists before this most recent setback.

With McAvoy out, the Bruins have slotted Matt Grzelcyk to Zdeno Chara's right on Boston's top pairing.

Elsewhere on the roster, the Bruins believe Brad Marchand will be ready to go following a good practice on Sunday, while Cassidy has yet to name his starting goaltender for the matinee affair against the Blackhawks.

This will be the first time the Bruins partake in a Winter Classic as the road team. Overall, they are 1-1 in the NHL's annual tradition, with a win over the Flyers at Fenway Park in 2010, and loss to the Canadiens at Gillette Stadium in 2016.

Ty Anderson is 98.5 The Sports Hub’s friendly neighborhood straight-edge kid. Ty has been covering the Bruins (and other Boston teams) since 2010, has been a member of the PHWA since 2013, and went left to right across your radio dial and joined The Sports Hub in 2018. Ty also writes about all New England sports from Patriots football to the Boston Celtics and Boston Red Sox.