The proverbial boxes have been checked across the board, and as a result, the streaking Bruins will be fully healthy for the first time in almost two months Saturday night at TD Garden.
More specifically, that means that the Bruins will welcome back center Matt Poitras, as well as defensemen Brandon Carlo and Derek Forbort, and that goaltender Linus Ullmark will get the call in the B’s net for a showdown against the visiting Canadiens.
“Carlo, yes, Poitras, yes, Forbort, yes, and Ullmark is starting,” Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery confirmed following what was an optional morning skate for his team at Brighton’s Warrior Ice Arena. “There you go. Lots and lots of tweets today.”
Oct 11, 2023; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Bruins center Matthew Poitras (51) makes a pass against the Chicago Blackhawks during the second period at TD Garden. (Winslow Townson/USA TODAY Sports)
For the 19-year-old Poitras, a return to the lineup Saturday comes with a slight timeline jump of sorts, as Montgomery’s comments on Friday seemed to indicate that Poitras was just a step behind rejoining the lineup as he works his way back from a shoulder injury sustained in Arizona back on Jan. 9.
Poitras, for what it’s worth, considered himself ‘a little banged up’ more than anything else. But with the Bruins getting some strong play down the middle — and from some potentially unexpected sources between Trent Frederic moving from wing to center and AHL recall Jesper Boqvist — the Bruins have clearly been afforded the luxury of taking their time with their breakout prospect.
Poitras had two assists and two hits in three games since returning from the 2024 World Juniors prior to suffering the injury on an attempted hit on the Coyotes’ Sean Durzi.
Overall, the crafty centerman has totaled five goals and 15 points, along with 38 shots and a plus-4 rating, in 30 games with the Bruins this season.
Nov 6, 2023; Dallas, Texas, USA; Boston Bruins defenseman Brandon Carlo (25) in action during the game between the Dallas Stars and the Boston Bruins at the American Airlines Center. (Jerome Miron/USA TODAY Sports)
Carlo, meanwhile, will make his return following what was a five-game absence with an upper-body injury. Speaking on Saturday morning, Carlo confirmed that it was a concussion that kept him out of action.
In Colorado, he took an elbow to the head, got back to the locker room and threw up. https://t.co/Xc8Ulv1kDl
— Ty Anderson (@_TyAnderson) January 20, 2024Carlo is no stranger to concussion woes, with this being his sixth documented concussion, which makes his latest brush concerning. But Carlo said multiple times that he felt like this latest one was a ‘fluke’ more than anything else, and that he recognizes the symptoms and trusts and listens to his body more than ever when it comes to his concussion problems.
Nov 29, 2022; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Bruins defenseman Derek Forbort (28) watches the play during the second period against the Tampa Bay Lightning at TD Garden. (Bob DeChiara/USA TODAY Sports)
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS – OCTOBER 30: Linus Ullmark #35 of the Boston Bruins looks on wearing his mask during the second period against the Florida Panthers at TD Garden on October 30, 2023. (Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
And if you thought Ullmark’s injury was going to be a long-term one, you weren’t alone. Montgomery thought it when he watched Ullmark get carried off the ice in Arizona, and Ullmark admitted that he himself had fears that it was going to a longer term injury (he said ‘four to six weeks’).
But when he woke up the next day, Ullmark felt ‘way better’ than he could’ve hoped, and he went from an unknown to day-to-day in the blink of an eye.
Saturday will mark Ullmark’s fourth start of January. The 6-foot-5 netminder has posted a 2-0-0 record and .920 save percentage through three appearances this month.
Dec 15, 2023; Elmont, New York, USA; Boston Bruins defenseman Parker Wotherspoon (29) skates against the New York Islanders during the second period at UBS Arena. (Brad Penner/USA TODAY Sports)
With Poitras back, Oskar Steen will come out of the lineup as a healthy scratch for Boston.
And on the backend, it will be Mason Lohrei and Parker Wotherspoon who depart the lineup for the incoming Derek Forbort and Brandon Carlo.
The Bruins will also have to make a roster move between now and 7 p.m.
