Matt Poitras returning to Bruins earlier than expected after Canada eliminated
The Bruins should benefit from Canada’s suffering.
In the World Junior Championship quarterfinals in Gothenburg, Sweden, on Tuesday morning, Team Canada was defeated 3-2 by Czechia thanks to a deflected goal with 11 seconds remaining in the third period. This result eliminated Canada from the competition. This implies that Team Canada’s rookie Matt Poitras, 19, will be let go earlier than anticipated. The Czechs’ hero was UMass goalie Michael Hrabel (28 saves).
Jim Montgomery, the coach, hinted to reporters in Columbus that he believes Poitras will make a trip back to Boston on Wednesday. The Bruins host the Pittsburgh Penguins at home on Thursday after their Tuesday night game against the Blue Jackets, but that seems like a rapid turnaround. A more realistic goal date for a return is this Saturday’s matchup against the Tampa Bay Lightning at the Garden.
Montgomery remarked, “How soon he plays, again, that’s up for discussion because it just happened.”
Many Canadian supporters, who generally expect gold in international events, were not impressed with Poitras’ two goals and two assists in five games throughout the tournament. Canada hasn’t advanced past the medal round since 2019. In the previous two competitions, the Canadians took home the gold.
By the sounds of his remarks to Sportsnet in Canada, Poitras took the setback hard.
Poitras remarked, “I felt like I gripped my stick a bit too tight.” “I was unable to locate the net’s back. It’s awful. I feel as though I let the nation and some of these guys down.
It’s unclear where Poitras will play when he rejoins the Bruin squad. Georgii Merkulov, a 23-year-old rookie, was brought up from Providence to fill in for him. He was scheduled to play his third NHL game on Tuesday, centering a fourth line with Oskar Steen and Jakub Lauko. Entering the game against the Blue Jackets is Johnny Beecher. There will undoubtedly be debates about whether Poitras and/or Merkulov should take a more wing role.
