But Boston’s first dip into their minor-league ranks, with Michael Callahan recalled from AHL Providence on Wednesday morning, has not come with the club looking for a spark to snap out of their funk. It’s instead a result of Bruins head coach Marco Sturm running out of healthy bodies on the backend.
Speaking after Tuesday’s loss, Sturm revealed that Hampus Lindholm told the team following the morning skate that he would not be well enough to play in the team’s head-to-head with the Panthers. That marked Lindholm’s second straight absence for the club after returning to the lineup last Saturday in Colorado, and Lindholm’s fifth in the last six games overall. At one point, Lindholm’s absence from Sunday’s game in Utah looked more ‘load management’ related than anything else, but given what he said on Tuesday, it appears that the 6-foot-4 left-side defenseman has indeed suffered a setback with his lower-body injury.
Lindholm was on the ice for Boston’s optional practice on Wednesday. But he was also on the ice for Tuesday’s morning skate, so the B’s have likely entered the “we’ll see you when we see you in game uniform” era of this recovery.
Boston’s injury situation on the backend extended beyond Lindholm, though, with Jordan Harris spotted walking around the Black and Gold dressing room with a heavy and noticeable limp following the defeat.
And so with the club down to just five healthy defensemen, and with Mason Lohrei appearing to be in Sturm’s doghouse following the loss, the Bruins made the call to the P-Bruins for Callahan.
Now in his fourth season in the AHL, the 6-foot-2 Callahan comes back to Boston with a plus-1 rating and two shots on goal through four games for the P-Bruins this season. Last season, the Franklin, Mass. native made 17 NHL appearances for Boston, and posted one goal, along with eight hits and 12 blocks, while averaging 14:09 per game for the Big B’s.
The Bruins will look to end their five-game slide Thursday night when the Anaheim Ducks come to town.