Bruins head coach Bruce Cassidy said that the Bruins would not have an update on Kevan Miller until the veteran defenseman was released from the hospital following a high-and-late hit from the Capitals’ Dmitry Orlov.
Saturday came with that update, but without much in regards to Miller’s overall health.
“Kevan is back home,” Cassidy said following Saturday’s optional skate. “Spent the night at the hospital, went through a number of tests, feeling a little bit better, and that’s what we got.”
Cassidy added that the 33-year-old Miller will indeed be out for Sunday’s Game 5 in Washington, which will leave the Bruins with just two options on their third pairing opposite Connor Clifton.
“Only two healthy guys we have are [Jarred] Tinordi and [Urho] Vaakanainen, so it will be one of those two,” said Cassidy. “We’ll probably just slide ’em in beside Clifton. Obviously, Clifton will go to the right side.”
Cassidy’s update on his fill-in options means that Jeremy Lauzon still isn’t ready to jump into action after suffering an injury in Game 1, and that Jakub Zboril still isn’t upright after suffering an injury in the regular season finale.
Tinordi, picked up from waivers when the Bruins were decimated by injuries midway through the season, has totaled one assist and 44 hits and 19 blocks in 14 games with Boston, while Vaakanainen made nine appearances this year and has made 16 NHL appearances over the last three seasons.
Neither player is particularly experienced when it comes to the Stanley Cup Playoffs either, with Tinordi suiting up for nine career playoff games since 2013 while Vaakanainen is still looking for his first career playoff appearance.
“We’re not going to wheel a guy in there that hasn’t played much and stick him out there for 25 minutes, but you can’t hide guys either,” Cassidy admitted. “You can try to support them as best as possible, protect them in certain situations, but when you go on the road and don’t have the last line change, there’s certain matchups you’re just going to have to live with and expect the player to get it done.”
Ty Anderson is a writer and columnist for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Yell at him on Twitter: @_TyAnderson.
