Jim Montgomery is shuffling up the Bruins’ forward corps ahead of Wednesday’s road matchup against the Colorado Avalanche.
With Boston’s 5-on-5 offense severely lacking so far this season beyond the contributions of the fourth line, the Bruins’ middle-six grouping was augmented during Wednesday’s morning skate in Denver.
Top-six winger Morgan Geekie and fellow forward Justin Brazeau will slot out of the lineup for Wednesday’s matchup, with Max Jones and Riley Tufte expected to play alongside Matthew Poitras on the third line.
As a result, Trent Frederic will likely move up to the second line in place of Geekie — who has yet to record a point through four games this season.
Geekie’s benching comes at a time where Boston’s second line has generated zero 5-on-5 points so far this season.
While Geekie stands as the first player in that critical segment of the lineup to draw the ire of Montgomery, center Charlie Coyle may not be far behind.
Much like Geekie, Coyle has yet to record a point through four games. After averaging a career-best 18:04 of ice time per game in 2023-24, the 32-year-old center only logged 14:32 in Monday’s 4-3 loss to the Panthers.
“Charlie Coyle, he looks like he’s not up to speed right now,” Montgomery noted Tuesday at Warrior Ice Arena. “But he’ll get there. He’s a veteran player that we’ve relied on in so many areas. We don’t have concerns about Charlie getting to where he needs to be.”