Boston Hockey Now just reported that Frederic Brunet and Sean Kuraly are drawing into the Bruins lineup tonight at Pittsburgh.
Puck drops at 7:00 PM ET at PPG Paints Arena, and the Bruins want a better road effort after Marco Sturm's criticism. Boston is 4-3-1 away from home, a clear gap from its home record.
Boston Hockey Now put out the projected lines this afternoon, and the post says Brunet slots in on the third pair while Kuraly goes onto the fourth line.
[LINEUP: Bruins projected changes | Bruins at Penguins
D3: Frederic Brunet / TBD
F4: TBD / Sean Kuraly / TBD
[/LINEUP]
The post does not say who comes out, so that part stays open for now. Sturm's group will find out soon enough how this looks at puck drop.
Brunet has been a steady piece on the back end. The 23-year-old has 10 games played this season with 1 goal and 3 assists, and he's a +4. For a fifth-round pick from 2022, that's a real contribution.
We had him on the radar when Brunet's return to the Bruins lineup was first reported Wednesday.
Why Kuraly's return to the fourth line matters on the road
Kuraly has played five games this season and hasn't recorded a point. He's 33, and his case isn't built on offense. The veteran has 63 playoff games over his career, and that experience is part of why a coach turns to him in a tough building.
Pittsburgh is a spot where Boston should feel good about its chances. The Penguins are 5-8-2, they've lost three straight, and they're 1-6-1 at home... wait, that record is their road mark, so the more accurate read is simply this: they sit 29th in the NHL.
Boston, meanwhile, is 11-4-1 and first in the Atlantic. The Bruins have won two straight, including a 3-2 shootout win over Vegas on Monday.
That's a good position, but the road record is the one blemish. A team that is 7-1-0 at home and 4-3-1 away has a clear problem to fix, and Sturm's lineup tweaks are his first answer.
There is still the matter of Matt Poitras's game-time status, which remains unconfirmed in this post. The Bruins will have more clarity at warmups before puck drop.
