Bruins shuffle lines again in effort to boost secondary scoring

After another outing in which the Patrice Bergeron line accounted for all of the goal scoring for the Bruins, Bruce Cassidy was quick to note that the lack of secondary scoring was becoming an issue for the Black and Gold.

“We know we have a line that’s going to deliver that every night,” Cassidy said after Boston’s 5-2 loss to the Flames on Wednesday. “We went home and we did get some (scoring). I thought we had a much better balance. You hope that continues, it didn’t tonight. It’s a valid question to ask. Until it’s there on a regular basis, we’re going to have to address it.”

In an effort to get three lines going, Cassidy once again put his roster into a blender ahead of Thursday’s tilt against the Oilers, with Anders Bjork getting scratched and Danton Heinen returning to the second line with David Krejci and Jake DeBrusk.



“We’re going to put Heinen back in. Anders will come out tonight. Again, we’ve been rotating some of those guys, but that’s what we’re looking at for tonight. … We’re going to move the lines around a little, a little bit of a matchup tonight. Heinen will go with Krejci and DeBrusk, try to get him going — that’s originally the spot we’d like.”

While Joakim Nordstrom has held his own in a top-six role through the past week, it is paramount to get Heinen going in a spot that Cassidy admitted was envisioned for the 23-year-old skater.

In order to combat the speedy Connor McDavid, Nordstrom will slot down the fourth line with Sean Kuraly and Noel Acciari, while Chris Wagner will get a bump up to the third line with David Backes and Ryan Donato.

“I think Nordstrom has done a terrific job in terms of  generating chances, drawing penalties, still solid defensively. It’s not a reflection on him,” Cassidy said of the lineup move. “But he’s going to go with Kuraly and Acciari. I think there’s a speed matchup against McDavid, we’re kind of juggling some guys.”

Even with Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak on a torrid pace (34 points over five games), Boston will need some other contributors up front — even if both Krejci (58.82 CF%) and DeBrusk (team-high 60.87 CF%) have generated plenty of chances on the second line.

Given Heinen’s potential as an effective scorer (47 points) and a responsible 200-foot-player, the winger could very well settle in on a line that seems ready to break through.

“They’re doing their part,” Cassidy said of the second line. “They’re trying to get to the net, create offense. Hopefully, it goes in for them eventually. That’s kind of the plan. We need it from them. It can’t be the same three guys every night.”

Cassidy added that the Bruins might be considering a few changes to their D pairs, but no word will be official until right ahead of puck drop at 9 p.m. John Moore ranked last among Bruins blueliners with a 35.29 Corsi For Percentage on Wednesday, even if he was also on the ice for four high-danger scoring chances.