Game Day Notes: Bruins' Kevan Miller returns to the lineup

TORONTO -- Defenseman Kevan Miller returns to the lineup as the Boston Bruins face the Toronto Maple Leafs Saturday night at Air Canada Centre. He's missed the last nine games with an upper-body injury. As a result, Adam McQuaid will be a healthy scratch.

"Adam did a great job. Kevan did a great job before he got hurt, so that's always a tough call when you're not playing guys that are healthy but it's a good problem to have in the long run," said Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy.



Miller will be partnered with rookie defenseman Matt Grzelcyk.

"I'm just excited to get back in," Miller said. "The guys have been playing really well and I'll continue to contribute, come in, keep things simple and play my game."

Miller said he's not worried about rust in his game.

"Not too much," he said. "Coaches do a great job getting guys into shape and making sure they're ready to go in practice. I've had a number of practices and feel pretty good."

Hurry up and wait: Newcomer Nick Holden may have to wait to make his Bruins debut. Cassidy said it's a game-to-game decision because the coach has been impressed with the way the current defensive core has played this season. Plus, the coach is loyal to those players that helped the team get to this point.

"He will get in there eventually but I don't want to pinpoint a date," Cassidy said.

The Bruins begin their 11th set of back-to-back games against the Maple Leafs before Boston plays the Buffalo Sabres on Sunday. So, playing a pair of games in less than a 24-hour period could be possibility for Holden to play.

"It could," Cassidy said. "There's certainly an opportunity in back-to-backs to put a couple of other guys in, but again, I don't want to say for sure. Our guys have played back-to-backs and we've been good in them for the most part."

Masked men: Tuukka Rask will get the nod against the Maple Leafs, and Anton Khudobin will start against the Sabres on Sunday. Rask is 24-10-4 with a 2.17 goals-against average and a .922 save percentage in 39 games this season. He's 16-6-2 with a 2.06 GAA and a .926 SP in 27 career games against the Maple Leafs. Frederik Andersen will start for Toronto. He's 31-16-4 with a .266 GAA and a .923 SP in 52 games this season. He's 9-1-0 with a 2.00 GAA and a .940 SP in 10 career starts against the Bruins.

No Matthews: The Maple Leafs will be without Auston Matthews, who suffered an apparent shoulder injury on Thursday. According to Maple Leafs coach Mike Babcock, Matthews is listed as day-to-day. He has 28 goals and 22 assists for 50 points in 53 games this season.

Special teams: The Bruins haven't been efficient on the power play of late. They're 2-for-26 on the man-advantage in the last eight games. Overall, the Bruins' PP is ranked 14th in the league, while their penalty kill is second. Toronto's PP is 18th in the league, while its PK is fourth.

Here are the Bruins' projected line combinations and defensive pairings vs. the Maple Leafs.

Forwards

Marchand-Bergeron-Pastrnak
DeBrusk-Krejci-Spooner
Heinen-Nash-Backes
Schaller-Kuraly-Acciari

Defense

Chara-McAvoy
Krug-Carlo
Grzelcyk-Miller

Goalies

Rask

Here are the Maple Leafs' projected line combinations and defensive pairings vs. the Bruins.

Forwards

Marleau-Nylander-Marner
Hyman-Kadri-Brown
van Riemsdyk-Bozak-Kapanen
Komarov-Moore-Leivo

Defense

Rielly-Hainsey
Gardiner-Zaitsev
Dermott--Polak

Goalies

Andersen