Josh Norris being out gives Marco Sturm and the Bruins a clean break heading into Game 3 at TD Garden.

That's a real swing in this series. Buffalo confirmed Norris won't play Thursday, and Lindy Ruff would only say the absence is not illness-related.

For Boston, this lands at the right time. The Bruins just pulled the series back to 1-1 with a 4-2 win in Buffalo, and now one of the Sabres' more productive forwards is off the board for the next puck drop.

Norris wasn't dragging into the postseason, either. He carried a six-game point streak into the playoffs and had just finished his highest point total since 2021-22.

He also set new career highs with 21 assists and a plus-11 rating this season. Buffalo's own player notes listed him fourth in points per game among Sabres skaters.

So this is more than losing a depth piece. It takes one of Buffalo's better all-around forwards out of a lineup that already needs to get to its offense earlier against Jeremy Swayman.

Buffalo does have an answer lined up. Noah Ostlund is set to replace Norris, which gives the Sabres fresh legs but also asks a different player to handle playoff minutes in a tight series.

Boston gets a better path without Norris

The Bruins still have plenty to worry about. Tage Thompson finished the regular season with 40 goals and 81 points, while Alex Tuch scored 33 times, so Boston is not catching a weak lineup here.

But taking Norris out changes the feel of the matchup. It trims Buffalo's forward depth and removes a player who had been generating offense right up to the end of the regular season.

That matters even more because the Sabres were a 50-23-9 team and one of the league's best road clubs after December 9. Ruff's group was always going to push back in Boston.

Sturm doesn't need to overthink the opening now. His club already found traction in Game 2, and Norris being unavailable gives Boston one less proven Buffalo threat to manage over 60 minutes.

That doesn't hand the Bruins anything. But in a tied playoff series, losing a forward who finished fourth on the team in points per game is the kind of break coaches gladly take and never apologize for.