Donnelly: With the roster almost set, what will the Bruins' opening night roster look like?

With the season opener just two days away, the Bruins have nearly trimmed down to their final roster to begin the 2023-24 campaign after placing Oskar Steen, Jakub Zboril and Jesper Boqvist on waivers on Saturday before waving A.J. Greer and Patrick Brown on Sunday.  

Assuming Brown and Greer clear waivers as the three from Saturday did, they'll report to Providence. Sunday's moves paved the way for Johnny Beecher to make the NHL roster, while Matt Poitras also remains a lock to make his NHL debut on Wednesday against Connor Bedard and the Chicago Blackhawks. 

Considering Boqvist's demotion and the timing with the season looming in just a pair of sleeps, it feels all but a given that Danton Heinen will earn a contract off of his PTO. 

Brown, signed for two years as a no-frills, hard-nosed defensive forward, did not do enough to earn the job he signed on for, largely due to his skating disadvantages compared to a galloper like Beecher. Greer had a fine camp, but couldn't grab headlines the way he did as a surprise last fall. Milan Lucic's improvement through camp all but sealed his fate. Another round of unfortunate injury luck for Zboril allowed Ian Mitchell to leapfrog him in his absence, while Boqvist did not translate his speed and skill into game action. 

The weekend's transactions currently leave the Bruins with 22 skaters on the roster, plus Heinen on the tryout as the 13th forward – they do not have the cap room to carry a full 23-man roster as things stand. In order to sign Heinen and become cap compliant by Monday at 5 p.m., something will have to give on defense, likely either sending Mason Lohrei to Providence (sans waivers) or waiving Mitchell. There is always the option of an 11th-hour trade involving Derek Forbort or Matt Grzelcyk, as unlikely as it may seem. Of course, the Bruins could always buy themselves some more time by not signing Heinen for a few more days. 

Lohrei will be in the NHL at some point this season, based on what he has exemplified in the preseason as well as Jim Montgomery's comments to TNT last week. I don't see him wasting away on the ninth floor, nor do I see a cap-dump trade coming together at the last second. For now, he'll be eating 25-plus all-situations minutes a night in Providence.

Now that the roster is all but set, here is my projected opening night lineup. While only a few things have changed from my way-too-early projection from Aug. 2, there are some rather significant tweaks: 

FORWARDS

James van Riemsdyk -- Pavel Zacha -- David Pastrnak

JVR, Zacha and Pastrnak only got into one game together, but they clicked on a first-period tally against the Capitals. In the brief 5-on-5 time they were together, their line lived up to a similar identity as last season, trading chances with the opposition, although shot attempts were heavily in Boston's favor. Zacha and Pastrnak should only continue to grow their chemistry from last season. If Zacha can get it done like he did as nearly a point-per-game player as 2C last season and Pastrnak can come in the vicinity of replicating his 61 goals from a season ago, it'll only help the aging van Riemsdyk, who should get plenty of net-front work. 

Brad Marchand -- Charlie Coyle -- Jake DeBrusk

There was a chance it might have been Poitras centering Marchand and DeBrusk, but after Thursday's preseason finale and the last few days of practice, it seems Coyle will get his shot as a top-six pivot. He looked the part in New York, and the returns were positive in small sample sizes last season, particularly early on in the first round of the playoffs. His offensive game should be good enough with Marchand and DeBrusk supporting him. The captain set the tone throughout the preseason and will continue to do so when the puck drops Wednesday. On the right, a motivated DeBrusk is playing for a long-term contract in Boston, assuming health, this should be the year he cracks the 30-goal threshold. 

Trent Frederic -- Matt Poitras -- Morgan Geekie

Poitras was the surprise that everyone needed out of camp, and it is mighty convenient that as soon as Krejci and Patrice Bergeron retire, the top-six center of the future is ready this quickly after years of developmental futility on the Bruins' part. I digress. The trio showed well in the preseason finale at Madison Square Garden on Thursday, turning defense into offense for the game-winning goal, thanks in part to Frederic's prowess as a bigger body below the goal line. Poitras proved he could withstand the rigors of older, stiffer competition as the preseason wore on, and he excelled with each test. Having Geekie and Frederic with him not only provides a lot of forechecking prowess, but two additional faceoff men if needed. Geekie's smarts should complement the cerebral Poitras well, too. Still would prefer Poitras in the top-six, but this could be an interesting combo to kick things off for his nine-game sample.  

Milan Lucic -- Johnny Beecher -- Jakub Lauko

This will be a beast of a fourth unit to play against with all three players bringing their fair share of heft between Lucic (6-3, 236), Beecher (6-3, 216) and Lauko (6-1, 193), albeit in a smaller package. Neither shy away from physicality. Each should complement the other well between Lucic's snarl and net-front presence, Beecher's speed and forechecking ability and Lauko's tenacity and skating ability as well. The latter two's skating should be able to pick up the veteran as well. If Lauko can build off a strong sample last season and Beecher can play to his strengths (and perhaps unlock some more offense), the two youngsters could be key bottom-six contributors. The trio meshed well in preseason action and during camp and could be a fun line to watch in the early going. 

DEFENSE

Matt Grzelcyk -- Charlie McAvoy

This pair needs no introduction. Grzelcyk and McAvoy should continue to be a dominant pair for the B's, who outscored opponents 36-15 with the two on the ice at 5v5 last season. In the 16:15 they were together at 5v5 across two preseason games, the Bruins dominated, holding over 60 percent advantages in shot attempts, scoring chances and high-danger chances. The biggest test for McAvoy will be if he can produce even just a little more offense to thrust himself into that Norris-Trophy echelon of defensemen. His all-around game is there, but the points are what sell these days, unfortunately. For Grzelcyk, it's once again if he can hold up physically and translate his game effectively to be trusted in the postseason. Contract year for him. Rumors will be swirling, especially as Lohrei continues to push.  

Hampus Lindholm -- Brandon Carlo

Like Grzelcyk-McAvoy, the Bruins basically had video game possession numbers with Lindholm and Carlo on the ice together last season, outscoring 34-18 and holding significant advantages in shots on goal and scoring chances across 649:16 of 5v5 play, the most of any of their pairs last season. They were hardly together in the preseason, but that shouldn't be much of a worry. Lindholm was a Norris candidate for much of last season, whether or not he can somewhat repeat that form will go a long way for Boston's plans, as will another healthy season for Carlo. 

Derek Forbort -- Kevin Shattenkirk

Between Forbort's setback with a lower-body injury and Shattenkirk still transitioning himself from a man-to-man system to Montgomery's zone, this pair was still working up to speed at the tail end of the preseason. The two had a rough showing on Thursday after a fairly forgettable camp for Shattenkirk. Nevertheless, Forbort did well in a defense-only and penalty-kill role last season (before the playoffs) after the experiment on McAvoy's left failed the season before. He will be fine in the same role as last year, barring any other setbacks. Shattenkirk's ability to move the puck will play off Forbort well, and assuming he is able to shake off the rust, should be a more responsible option than Connor Clifton. He also adds another option for the second power-play unit. 

GOALTENDERS

Linus Ullmark

The league's best goaltending tandem will be running it back, which gives the Bruins a chance to win any given night, no matter who is in net. Ullmark's performance from last season is hardly repeatable, and there will be a regression of some sort. The all-important question is how steep it will be. He had a rather average career .913 save percentage going into last season, and he had a .917 his first year in Boston. If he can find ground between his debut season in Black and Gold and last year's .938, he'll be just fine.

Jeremy Swayman

It's not unreasonable to expect more starts to go Swayman's way this season for closer to a 50-50 split. The young netminder is out to prove he is the goaltender of the future in hopes of a long-term deal this offseason. Ullmark handled the bulk of the tougher assignments against playoff competition last season. Swayman will need to take on and pass more of those tests this year. 

EXTRA SKATERS

Ian Mitchell

Mitchell took hold of the opportunity that was afoot when Zboril went down with an injury in the first preseason game. Save for a quiet night in the exhibition finale, the latter performed well in-game action, using his skating ability to keep plays alive and create chances at the offensive blue line while getting himself out of trouble in his own end. His defensive game improved as camp went on, which was a contributing factor as well. If Shattenkirk struggles, Mitchell's right-handedness and offensive ability make him a viable candidate to earn reps in his place. 

Danton Heinen

Heinen earned the job as the extra forward after outplaying Boqvist in their game samples. The Bruins brass and Montgomery know his game very well. Heinen has added more responsibility to his game, and the B's deployed him heavily in defensive situations during the preseason, especially compared to Boqvist, which falls more in line with the role he'll be asked to play. Assuming it's a league-minimum contract he signs, Heinen will provide low-risk and versatile depth, capable of playing both wings, plugging various roles and working on special teams.