BRIGHTON, Mass. — Jim Montgomery is not wasting time. On Thursday, the first day of on-ice sessions at Boston Bruins training camp, the coach rolled his No. 1 line of Pavel Zacha, Elias Lindholm and David Pastrnak. It optimizes Lindholm, the Bruins’ $54.25 million investment, as a five-on-five producer with Pastrnak. Zacha moves back to left wing, the position he played as a first-year Bruin.
The No. 1 line is a go. The rest of the lineup isn’t far off.
Here’s how we see it shaking out, with analysis below.
Second line
Brad Marchand did not participate in either of the first two practices. The captain has been skating on his own as he recovers from his offseason procedures. He will be ready for the regular-season opener.
For now, Tyler Johnson has taken Marchand’s shifts next to Charlie Coyle. Johnson’s versatility, to say nothing of his price, puts him in place to turn his professional tryout agreement into a one-year, short-money contract.
“He made a lot of small, subtle support plays. Which has been a strength of his for his whole career,” Montgomery said after Day 1. “He looked like he knew our D-zone coverage, which I don’t think he ever played in Tampa or Chicago.”
The bigger question is who is at right wing, Jake DeBrusk’s former spot.
Fabian Lysell spent the first two days on Coyle’s right flank. It’s a good bet the bosses want Lysell to maximize the opportunity.
“Clearly we would like to see a player emerge,” general manager Don Sweeney said. “(Johnny) Beecher and (Matt) Poitras are great examples last year of two players — that pleasant surprise we all hope for from the development path.”
Lysell, listed at 188 pounds, appears stronger on the puck. It will serve him well in battles, and not just the ones in the offensive zone. Marchand and Coyle draw difficult defensive assignments. They’ll need a trustworthy right wing in their end.
“He’s visibly stronger,” Montgomery said after the first practice. “You can see him wanting pucks more, going to get more pucks. That’s what we want. He’s an offensively gifted player. We want the puck on his stick. He did a good job competing for pucks and having the puck more.”
If Lysell doesn’t stick, Morgan Geekie could get the job. Geekie has centered Max Jones and Justin Brazeau so far. Trent Frederic could also get a look.
It’s possible the Bruins consider Poitras too. He is a natural center, but he practiced at right wing next to Cole Koepke and Frederic. Poitras played right wing in his first junior season with Guelph.
Poitras moved back to center on Friday between Zacha and Pastrnak. Lindholm was unavailable because of an undisclosed injury. Lindholm is not expected to participate in Saturday’s scrimmage in Providence.
Montgomery’s primary reason for auditioning Poitras at wing is to maximize his time on offense. In the Bruins’ system, the center is usually the last forward out of the defensive zone because of his down-low responsibilities. The weak-side wing, in comparison, is encouraged to initiate transition and take a defender with him.
Poitras is eager for the switch. He would play goalie if it meant making the varsity instead of opening in Providence.
“I’m ready to play wherever,” Poitras said. “I don’t know if I’m better off in either spot. We’ll see where I’m more comfortable. I can be comfortable at center or wing. Wherever they need me to play, I’ll be ready to play there.”
Third line
The Frederic-Geekie-Brazeau trio weighs 656 pounds. It’s a lot of beef for opponents to handle. Their job would be to forecheck, worry defensemen and control the puck down low. Running Frederic and Geekie together also gives Montgomery a lefty and righty for situational faceoffs.
Other candidates: Jones and Mark Kastelic. Poitras could also move to No. 3 center.
Fourth line
Running Beecher (lefty) and Kastelic (righty) gives Montgomery another flexible faceoff pair. As for Jones, the ex-Anaheim Duck should be a straight-line forechecking menace. All three will be in the penalty-killing mix.
Other candidates: Johnson, Marc McLaughlin, Riley Tufte.
First pair
The Nikita Zadorov–Charlie McAvoy duo is locked in. They were together for the first two practices. Zadorov’s length and heaviness should give McAvoy more touches. Matt Grzelcyk, McAvoy’s previous primary partner, had a difficult 2023-24, which factored into both defensemen being negative possession players.
“It will give Charlie more time and space to make more plays,” Montgomery said of the Zadorov-McAvoy partnership, “if it works as a pairing.”
Second pair
Hampus Lindholm and Brandon Carlo shared a team-leading 668:05 of five-on-five time last year, per Natural Stat Trick. Their size, length and familiarity will make them Montgomery’s go-to shutdown unit.
Lindholm, however, slipped last season (16 five-on-five points) compared to an excellent 2022-23 (28).
“He relishes being a shutdown guy,” Montgomery said. “But he also knows he’s a guy we rely on to help our offensive engine go. Is he going to be put in situations to push that more? I don’t think we need to do that. I think it’s just going to organically happen because of how good he is.”
Third pair
Mason Lohrei likes to go. Andrew Peeke is a stay-at-homer. So it should be a balanced pair, even if Lohrei has room to grow defensively.
“Offensively, he’s pretty assertive,” Montgomery said. “I’m looking for him to be more assertive defensively.”
Goalies
The Jeremy Swayman standoff continues. When the sides will agree is unknown.
Until then, it’s up to Joonas Korpisalo and Brandon Bussi to take advantage of more camp reps than expected.
(Photo of David Pastrnak and Pavel Zacha: Bruce Bennett / Getty Images)
