The Boston Bruins announced that goaltender Tuukka Rask is sidelined for at least the weekend with an upper-body injury.
#NHLBruins updates per Bruce Cassidy:
Tuukka Rask will not play this weekend.
Jeremy Lauzon is “very close” to return but won’t play Sat.
Karson Kuhlman is undergoing an MRI after blocking a shot last night.
Brandon Carlo, Kevan Miller, and Ondrej Kase skated before practice. pic.twitter.com/ukCzTDqkWk
— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) March 26, 2021
Bruins’ Tuukka Rask Sidelined with Injury
Rask left the game on Thursday against the New York Islanders after one period and did not return.
Thursday’s game against the Islanders was the first he played since March 7. The 34-year-old was injured during the 1-0 loss against the New Jersey Devils. It’s unclear what caused him to leave the game against New York.
Rask is currently 8-4-2 with a 2.46 goals-against average and .906 save percentage. The Bruins goaltender has a 299-162-66 career record in 550 games with 530 starts. Rask also has a 2.27 goals-against average, .921save percentage and 50 shutouts.
He has appeared in 93 playoff games and has a 51-42-0 record, 2.20 goals-against average, .926 save percentage and seven shutouts. Rask was Tim Thomas‘ backup when Boston won the Stanley Cup in 2011.
What This Means for the Future
Rask has been out for seven games so far and the Bruins have been relying on their backups to hold the fort. They were 3-2-1 since his injury on March 7 and added another overtime loss on Thursday. The team has also been suffering from injuries and COVID outbreaks, having had two games postponed this past week.
Boston has been struggling throughout this season. This comes as a surprise as they were the favourites to be first in the division. Of course, they started without Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak but as they went back into the lineup, the injury bug didn’t leave the team.
Brandon Carlo, Jeremy Lauzon and Zach Senyshyn were all injured but returned to practice on Wednesday. Sean Kuraly and Jake DeBrusk are still on the NHL Covid Protocol List. Things are not going as planned for Boston.
They’re sitting on East Division’s fourth place with 37 points, three points ahead of the New York Rangers. Boston’s next three games are against the Buffalo Sabres and New Jersey Devils. These are must-wins if they want to keep their playoff spot safe. However, having Carlo, Lauzon and Senyshyn back in practice is a good sign and Jaroslav Halak has been solid when needed.
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