When the Bruins had to replace center Riley Nash for Game 1 of their playoff series against the Maple Leafs, trade deadline acquisition Tommy Wingels was ready to step in and help out.
BOSTON -- Tommy Wingels was the last of four players the Bruins added before the NHL’s Feb. 26 trade deadline.
He was their first option when the B’s needed somebody to help them juggle the bottom half of their forward group for Game 1 of their best-of-7 Round 1 playoff series against the Maple Leafs on Thursday night at TD Garden.
With No. 3 center Riley Nash still not available because of the ear laceration that cost him the final five games of the regular season, B’s coach Bruce Cassidy pulled Nolan Acciari off the fourth line and moved him into Nash’s spot. Wingels was an easy choice to move into Acciari’s slot at right wing with left wing Tim Schaller and center Sean Kuraly.
“They play a predictable game, in a good way,” said Wingels, who was obtained from the Blackhawks for a conditional fifth-round draft choice in 2019, of his linemates. “And it’s kind of like the way I like to play, as well.”
The Schaller-Kuraly-Acciari trio grew this season into a physical, energetic, effective unit that Cassidy didn’t fear using against opponents’ top lines when the situation dictated. Wingels, who turned 30 on Thursday, had previously played similar roles with the Sharks and, a year ago, as a trade deadline acquisition with the Senators (he played two games against the B’s in last year’s first round), so he knew what was expected, and what to expect.
“As a team, you have a game plan,” said Wingels, who scored two goals and five points in 18 regular season games after the Bruins added him. “I think it’s also important as an individual, and as a line, to talk about what you want to accomplish.
“We’ve done that. We know how we want to play, the kind of game we want to play. When we’re on the same page, and kind of know what to expect from each other, the game’s easier.”
Just in time: Kuraly, the rookie center who played the first 75 games of the season before missing the last seven with an upper body injury, returned to his fourth line assignment for Game 1.
“I think I did the best I could to get ready, and I’m feeling really good,” said Kuraly, whose injury was never fully specified. “With some injuries, you’re not sure how long it’ll keep you out. It’s not as clear as a broken bone or something. I’m just happy I got better quickly.”
Acquired from the Sharks on June 30, 2015, along with a 2016 first-round draft pick (Trent Frederic, now under contract and playing at AHL Providence), for goalie Martin Jones -- who had just been obtained from the Kings for Milan Lucic -- Kuraly was about to become an unlikely playoff hero at this time last year. Promoted from Providence to Boston at the end of his first pro season, Kuraly scored the tying goal, and then the double-overtime winner, in Game 5 against the Senators last April 21.
While disappointed that his bid to play all 82 games this regular season fell short (Schaller and David Pastrnak were the only Bruins to do it), Kuraly would have felt much worse if he’d had to miss Game 1 of the playoffs.
“You work all year to be in these games,” he said. “It’s fun to be here.”
Around the boards: Riley Nash, hurt when struck by a Torey Krug shot on March 31, was one of the few participants in Thursday’s morning skate at Warrior Ice Arena, and stayed on the ice longest. Nash started skating on Monday, but did an off-ice workout on Wednesday. … Forwards Ryan Donato and Brian Gionta were the Bruins’ healthy scratches, along with defenseman Nick Holden. … Krug, like Wingels, celebrated a birthday on Thursday. Krug turned 27 … Ex-Bruins center Dominic Moore, who played only four games after the Maple Leafs acquired checking center Tomas Plekanec from the Canadiens at the Feb. 26 trade deadline, was one of the Leafs’ healthy scratches. The six games Moore played for the B’s in last year’s first-round series against the Senators brought his career playoff total to 99 games.