Starting with Chara-Carlo, Bruins still have options without Charlie McAvoy

The Boston Bruins have a plan in place since the team will be without rookie defenseman Charlie McAvoy for the foreseeable future with what appears to be a knee injury. While the severity of his injury is not known, Bruce Cassidy believes the defensive depth can handle the workload during McAvoy’s absence.

McAvoy was being re-evaluated Monday afternoon, but Cassidy did rule out the first-year pro for Tuesday’s game against the Detroit Red Wings at TD Garden. Since McAvoy has played the entire season on the top pair with Zdeno Chara, Cassidy has reunited Brandon Carlo with the team’s captain. Those two played all 82 games together last season when Carlo was a rookie.

“For a guy who’s still in the early years of his career, he’s faced some pressure situations, some adversity, some challenges and he’s growing as a player and growing as a person,” Chara said. “You can see he’s getting better and better.”

Carlo has dealt with plenty of inconsistencies in his game this season. He’s been trying to play through the current rut he’s in and maybe playing with Chara again will give Carlo an opportunity to hit the reset button and regain some confidence.

“Especially right now with the unfortunate injury to Charlie, who has been (playing with Chara) all year and has done really well with it, I feel like we still have some of that chemistry," Carlo said. "Even today at practice, it feels like everything is just falling back in place for us. I definitely feel comfortable with him and that hasn’t changed much from the first game I played with him.”

Boston went 3-1-0 during the four-game stretch McAvoy was sidelined after having a procedure to treat a heart condition. The Bruins are hoping the defenseman’s current injury isn’t long term.

“We missed him for a pocket earlier this year and we survived it, but we’ll see what happens going forward with him and how extensive his injury will be,” Cassidy said. “Until we know that, it’s hard to get anxious, but we also know we have (Adam) McQuaid and (Matt) Grzelcyk, who both sat out last game (as healthy scratches) and are very capable defensemen, so that’s the good news that we have good replacements.”

Cassidy has options. All seven available defensemen were included during practice drills, but the coach said he would make a decision after Tuesday’s morning skate as the Bruins prepare to host the Red Wings. Cassidy did say that newcomer Nick Holden will remain in the lineup, so the decision comes down to either Grzelcyk or McQuaid. Grzelcyk has been battling a minor injury of late, but Cassidy said the rookie defenseman is ready to go if needed.

How the pairs could look against the Red Wings:

Chara-Carlo
Krug-McQuaid
Holden-Miller

or

Chara-Carlo
Krug-Miller
Grzelcyk-Holden

Even though Holden has played the left side in his first two games with the Bruins, he can also handle the right side if needed.

“Listen, it would help to see it with your own eyes,” Cassidy said. “I saw him play with (Ryan) McDonagh against us and actually watched the video after, so he’s fine over there. We don’t have that many concerns, but yes, obviously when you see it yourself, what I may look for might be different from another coach. We got him to play the left side. In the perfect world we’ve got four lefts and four rights, but if he slides over it’s something he’s comfortable with and we’ve had that discussion.”

Holden is dangerous on the second power-play unit too. He has the ability to get the puck to the net.

“He’s not over-thinking it, not trying to make a pretty play or an extra play,” explained Cassidy. “It’s something we’ve needed a little more of. We have some players that will make that extra play, and they’re good at it and it’s resulted in some goals, but Nick knows his strengths and can get it through to the net. He’s got a good eye for finding shooting lanes.”

The idea of needing left- and right-handers to play certain sides shouldn’t be that big of an issue at the NHL level. Yes, defensemen are comfortable with their strong side, but the ability to handle both roles is important to a team’s success, and to keep certain players in the lineup.

Playing the off side on the offensive blue line can be a challenge to keep pucks in the zone. In the neutral zone, it can be difficult for D-to-D plays with both D-men having the same-sided stick, which is one reason why Cassidy doesn’t like that type of play. He prefers a quick-up type pass to help the transition game and attack. In the defensive end, most players are comfortable on their off side because it’s easier to defend and close out a play.

The team’s overall defense was better the last three games against the Hurricanes, Penguins, and Canadiens. The one issue Cassidy is concerned with is the number of odd-man rushes the Bruins have allowed, which comes down to puck management.

“The fabric of our game is coming back around much better than what we saw (on the last road trip) so we’ve corrected some of that and we’ll keep working on that part,” Cassidy said.

Now that the Bruins are without Patrice Bergeron (broken foot) and McAvoy for an unknown amount of time, others will have to step up. This is why general manager Don Sweeney added depth at the deadline and it will prove crucial now and during the Stanley Cup playoffs.