Grzelcyk ‘doubtful' for Game 3 with a lower body injury

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TORONTO – Just as the Bruins are getting fully healthy up front, it looks like injuries will force some changes on the back end for Monday night’s Game 3 against the Toronto Maple Leafs as the series changes setting to the Air Canada Centre.

Matt Grzelcyk is listed as “doubtful” and isn’t expected to play on Monday night after sustaining a lower body injury against the Leafs in last weekend’s Game 2 win, and Nick Holden is going to be stepping in and making his playoff debut for the Black and Gold. Holden skated on the third pairing with Adam McQuaid during morning skate and was manning the point on the B’s second power play unit along with Charlie McAvoy during morning skate. 

“[Grzelcyk] has a lower body injury he sustained during the game and he played through it. We thought he’d be fine, and it acted up a little bit more than we would have liked. So he’s going to be doubtful [for Game 3],” said Bruce Cassidy. “I won’t rule him out because he may try it out in warm-ups and decide that he’s fine, but right now it looks like [Nick] Holden will be going into his spot.”

Grzelcyk was a plus-1 while averaging 16:30 of ice time in the first games of the playoff series against the Leafs, but there may be some upside to getting some size, strength and experience into the lineup with Holden in a road playoff game that may turn nasty based on Toronto’s desperation level. While Grzelcyk appears to be out, it also looks like Riley Nash is going to return to his regular third line center spot for the B’s after missing the last two plus weeks after taking a puck to the side of the head. Nash centered Danton Heinen and David Backes at morning skate, and it appeared that rookie Ryan Donato will be the healthy scratch making room for Nash in the lineup. 

Here are the projected Bruins line combos and D-pairings based on morning skate: 

 

Marchand-Bergeron-Pastrnak

DeBrusk-Krejci-Nash

Heinen-Nash-Backes

Schaller-Kuraly-Acciari

 

Chara-McAvoy

Krug-Miller

Holden-McQuaid

 

Rask

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