Why Bruins could consider loaning Matt Poitras to Team Canada
Bruins coach Jim Montgomery said Hockey Canada, that country’s governing body for national teams, has approached Don Sweeney about Boston potentially loaning Matt Poitras to Team Canada for the World Junior Championships.
At 19-years-old Poitras is still eligible to play in the annual tournament which begins on Dec. 26 in Gothenburg, Sweden. The event runs until Jan. 5. Depending on when he departed and how long Canada lasted, he could miss up to nine Bruins games.
“Having talked to Donnie, I think Hockey Canada has reached out,” Bruins coach Jim Montgomery said. “But we’re not making a decision on that right now.”
When they do decide, there are reasons to say yes and reasons to say no.
The obvious reason to say no is that the Bruins are thin up front. With Pavel Zacha injured and Milan Lucic out, the Bruins don’t have the luxury of spare forwards. They’re already going to play Jesper Boqvist and Patrick Brown more minutes than they’d like. Poitras, when he’s played well is one of their top four centers.
The World Juniors requires flying back and forth to Sweden, which isn’t a short flight. On top of that, they’re playing a lot of games in a short period of time. If the Bruins are trying to build rest and recovery into Poitras’ routine now, travel and an intense schedule for Team Canada seems counterproductive to those goals.
The reasons to say yes are a little less tangible, but they’re still compelling.
