Game 3 Notes: Bruins at Maple Leafs -- Riley Nash returns

TORONTO -- After a planes, trains and automobiles adventure that took 24 hours, I've finally arrived in Toronto for Game 3 of the first-round series between the Boston Bruins and Toronto Maple Leafs. It was an interesting trip, but I won't bore you with the details. If you're in town for this game and want to hear all about my trek, let's talk postgame over a local libation.

Now, onto more important things -- hockey.



The Bruins have a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series with an opportunity to put a stranglehold on things here at Air Canada Centre. The biggest news of the day is that Riley Nash will return balance to the force -- but just because he has a hockey stick in his hand, that doesn't make him Yoda. (There are two movie references there. I'm sure you can figure out the first one. If you guess the second, I'll be impressed.)

Anyway, Riley Nash, who has missed the last seven games due to a laceration on his ear and head, will be in the lineup for Game 3 in his usual spot, centering the third line with Danton Heinen on the left and David Backes on the right.

"It's nice to be in the mix again, and I'm excited about tonight," Nash told reporters after the team's optional morning skate.

Because it was a head injury, Nash went through the league-mandated protocol, since he was experiencing concussion-like symptoms. He said he's hoping to hit the reset button in hopes his hiatus doesn't have a negative impact on his game.

His return is huge for the Bruins. Many think the Bruins struggled down the stretch because the top line of Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron and David Pastrnak wasn't producing, but that's not the case. Without Nash in the mix, it totally messed with the mojo of the bottom six. Now, the third and fourth lines are back to normal, which bodes well for the Bruins.

During Nash's absence, Noel Acciari did well as the third-line center. He'll return to the right side on the grinder line. Nash will also return to the penalty-killing unit. While he watched the first two games as a spectator, Nash expects the Maple Leafs to play desperate and physical hockey in Game 3 on home ice.

"They're going to come out with a lot of energy and obviously the crowd's going to be into it right from the get-go. They're going to feed off that and probably be a little more physical than they've been and try to take it to us," Nash said. "In our barn we did a really good job of starting on time and quick starts and that helps us in our two wins. On home ice for them they're going to try similar tactics so we have to give early push back."

It appears the Bruins will be without rookie defenseman Matt Grzelcyk, who suffered a lower-body injury in Game 2. Nick Holden, who was a healthy scratch the first two games, will likely play the left side with Adam McQuaid. Coach Bruce Cassidy said Grzelcyk will attempt to take the pregame warmup.

Forward Tommy Wingels participated in the optional skate and has been cleared to play, but it appears he'll be a healthy scratch. He suffered an upper-body injury during Game 1 after a boarding call on the Maple Leafs' Nazem Kadri.

On the other end of the ice, the Maple Leafs will be without Leo Komarov in Game 3. He was on the receiving end of a big, clean hit by Bruins defenseman Kevan Miller in Game 2 -- he exited the game and did not return.

Komarov "is going to skate (Tuesday)," said Maple Leafs coach Mike Babcock. "He was going to skate (Monday), to tell you the truth. We've got two days so we just kept him off. He wasn't playing (Monday). He'll skate (Tuesday) and then skate the following day and then he'll be a game-time decision."

Despite being pulled after three goals on five shots in Game 2, Frederik Andersen will start Game 3 for the Maple Leafs.

"Oh yeah, for sure, 100 percent. He's our guy," Babcock said. "The puck was going in and it wasn't going our way, so we got him out. But, I've said already a couple times, we haven't done a very good job in front of him. You've got to give your goalie a chance to be good (and) we haven't done that. Freddie is our guy and he'll be back (Game 3)."

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

Forwards

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

Defense

Chara-McAvoy
Krug-Miller
Holden-McQuaid

Goalies

Rask