Bruins notebook: B’s lose Karson Kuhlman to waivers

Squeezed out of the picture in a numbers game in Boston, Karson Kuhlman has received a chance to play elsewhere.

The Seattle Kraken claimed the 26-year-old right wing on Monday. It cuts into the B’s depth a bit, but with the emergence of Oskar Steen, there was really no room left for Kuhlman, who had signed as a free agent out Minnesota-Duluth in 2018.

“I think (Steen) has done well enough to stay in the lineup. He plays the same position as Kuhlie so, yeah, that has a lot to do with it,” said coach Bruce Cassidy on Monday prior to Seattle’s claim. “There’s always a risk he does get picked up and you lose an asset, but that was the decision. I credit Steen for coming in and pushing and doing a good job. Kuhlie, on the other,when he went in he played well. He just played to his strength, tried to be a little more physical when he could be. Steen is just a little ahead of him right now.”

Kuhlman had a goal and an assist in 19 games this year. His biggest moment as a Bruin came in the 2019 Stanley Cup Finals when he scored in a Game 6 win that forced a Game 7 game at the Garden. But he was never able to secure a regular spot with in the Boston lineup.

Steen, meanwhile, has 1-4-5 totals in 11 NHL this season. Despite his short stature at 5-foot-9, he’s a little sturdier then Kuhlman and has gotten involved physically. He racked up six hits in the B’s 4-3 overtime win over Nashville on Saturday.

The Kraken have some familiarity with the B’s system. Seattle hired for Providence Bruins coach Jay Leach to be an assistant with the Kraken and, prior to claiming Kuhlman, they selected Jeremy Lauzon in the expansion draft. The Kraken also signed former Bruin Ryan Donato in September.

B’s face tough test vs. Carolina

The last time the Bruins played the Carolina Hurricanes, the B’s seemed like a different team. Goals were scarce in general for them, and they certainly were on October 28 when the Canes shut them out, 3-0, at PNC Arena.

After Cassidy changed his lines starting on January 1, the offense has been unlocked. In the nine games since the New Year, the B’s are averaging 4.44 goals per game while winning eight of those games.

Tuesday’s games against Carolina, the stingiest team in the league (2.29 GAA), will be a good measuring stick to see just much the Bruins have improved since that first meeting.

“I didn’t mind our game that day. I thought we were very physical, competed hard, tried to get inside and it didn’t work out on the scoresheet. Their first two goals were own goals that went in off us. I thought it was a closer game than the score ended up,” said Cassidy. “Certainly we’ve improved from then offensively, our finish and getting inside to get good looks. But I remember our effort in that game coming out of Florida (a 4-1 loss) was good in terms of compete, we just weren’t finishing very well back then for a number of different reasons. But at the end of the day now, let’s see where we are, let’s see how far we’ve come. They’ve obviously been a good team, top of their division on their side. It’s a good test for us. It’s one of 82, but sometimes you look at a team and say ‘OK how far have we come?’ Same for when we play Florida or Tampa. It’ll be one of those games and we’ll see how it works out.”

Since that time, not only has a fourth line come together, using several different player combinations, but the second line of Taylor Hall, Erik Haula and David Pastrnak have jelled to give the B’s a legitimate second scoring line.

The more they’ve played together, the more chemistry Hall and Pastrnak have been gaining. Since the line change, Pastrnak has 8-2-10 totals while Hall has chimed in with 3-8-11.

“They look for each other on the ice, but they also have an instinctual (feel) for knowing where they’re going to be because they think the same way. Pasta gets the puck and in his head he’s thinking ‘Well, where would I go right now if I didn’t have it?’” said Cassidy.

“So they can make some plays to areas that they’re a half a second ahead of the defending team. That helps. When you think the same way in a fast sport, you can beat people to spots. I think that has something to do with it. When you enjoy playing with one another, you tend to talk a lot, share ideas, so the communication is greater.”

Bruins to honor O’Ree

The Bruins will be retiring Willie O’Ree’s No. 22 on Tuesday in a pregame virtual ceremony. O’Ree broke the NHL’s color barrier in 1958 when he was called up by the Bruins to play against the Montreal Canadiens.

While there are more Black players in hockey than in O’Ree’s days, there is still plenty more room for growth.

“It really hasn’t been diverse enough. I think that’s on us basically on getting the word and accessibility out there,” said Connor Clifton. “It’s basically about accessibility and opening our game. Our game is amazing and the more people the better. We’ve got to get more inclusive and accessible for all.” …

Clifton returned to practice after testing positive for COVID-19 while the team was in Washington last week. He said he took a car service home that day with team videographer Mike Penhollow, who also contracted the virus.

Judging by Monday’s practice, it appears Clifton will go back in the lineup on a third pair with Derek Forbort. The pairing was coming together at the time both players went into protocol. Forbort had tested positive in the B’s stop prior in Tampa.

“That’s exactly how it was. I was starting to play good, feel good. The team was on a run, still are luckily. Obviously, it sucks watching. I did have COVID four months ago, so it’s not ideal. It is what. But after five days, I’m back out there,” said Clifton, who said he was mostly asymptomatic. “Just a cople of sniffles.” …

Brad Marchand (six goals, four assists, one broken nose) was named the NHL’s First Star of the Week. …

Trent Frederic and John Moore, both out with upper body injuries, remained off the ice. Matt Grzelcyk remained in the COVID-19 protocol.

from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/3nz1Wku