Boston Bruins David Krejci returned to the Bruins’ lineup against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday after missing three games with an upper-body injury. The center, who was injured in a 5-1 win against the Detroit Red Wings on Oct. 27, was the center on a line with left wing Taylor Hall and righty David Pastrnak. “We’re deep in the middle,” Bruins coach Jim Montgomery said. “And if you’re deep in the middle, you usually have a good team. Right now, we’re getting the results.” Krejci has eight points (two goals, six assists) in eight games this season for the Bruins, who are 10-1-0. Charlie McAvoy participated in the Bruins morning skate but did not play. The linebacker hasn’t played this season after offseason shoulder surgery. “He hasn’t checked all the boxes yet, so he’s not a player yet,” Montgomery said. Goaltender Jeremy Swayman, who suffered a lower-body injury in a 6-5 overtime win against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Tuesday, remains out for the week, Montgomery said. — Dave McCarthy Vancouver Canucks Brock Boeser will miss his sixth straight game after reopening a scar from hand surgery, a day after he said he was “very optimistic” he could return against the Nashville Predators on Saturday (10 p.m. ET? CBC, SN360, BSS0, ESPN+). The Canucks forward was supposed to be out 3-4 weeks after the surgery on Sept. 26, but returned early to play in the season opener on Oct. 12. He had four assists in six games before coming out of the lineup on Oct. 24 and being placed on injured reserve two days later with what was reported as an undisclosed injury. “The scar has opened up a little bit,” Boeser said Friday. “When you’re playing and it gets wet and sweaty, there’s a chance it could happen and unfortunately it did. You can get an infection if you keep playing with it and then it would be a lot worse, so obviously we had to take care of that.” — Kevin Woodley Washington Capitals Sonny Milano made his Capitals debut against the Arizona Coyotes on Saturday. The 26-year-old forward, who signed a one-year, $750,000 contract on Oct. 16, had three points (two goals, one assist) in five games with Hershey of the American Hockey League before being called up Wednesday. “Definitely excited,” Milano said. “It’s definitely been a strange summer, so definitely excited to get a game here.” Milano had 34 points (14 goals, 20 assists) in 66 games with the Anaheim Ducks last season, but became an unrestricted free agent after the Ducks decided not to tender him as a restricted free agent. He remained unsigned after attending training camp with the Calgary Flames on a professional tryout deal before the Capitals signed him to bolster their depth. Washington is missing forwards Tom Wilson (torn ACL), Nicklas Backstrom (hip surgery), TJ Oshie (lower body), Connor Brown (torn ACL) and Carl Hagelin (hip surgery) due to injuries. After scoring eight goals in their last five games, the Capitals are hoping Milano can help boost their attack. “He’s a guy that’s proven he can produce at the NHL level,” Capitals coach Peter Laviolette said. “He had a good year last year in Anaheim offensively and he’s off to a good start in Hershey, so we’ll give him a chance. tonight.” — Tom Gulitti, staff writer Toronto Maple Leafs Timothy Liljegren made his season debut for the Maple Leafs against the Boston Bruins on Saturday. General manager Kyle Dubas announced on Sept. 21 that the linebacker underwent sports hernia surgery and was expected to be out six weeks. Liljegren, who skated with Morgan Rielly in Friday’s practice, had 23 points (five goals, 18 assists) in 61 games last season. “The body feels good, so I’m excited to get back to full training,” Liljegren said. “It should be fun, I think [Rielly and I] played a couple of times [together] last year too. Obviously [he is] a very good defender so I will try to support him as much as I can. “I was really happy with how my season went last year. I think I made strides throughout the season.” Toronto coach Sheldon Keefe said Liljegren’s absence in the early part of the season was felt by the Maple Leafs. “I just hope Liljegren goes out there and is himself,” Keefe said. “He was in a really good rhythm for us by the end of the regular season for us last year and he had become an important part of our team in both 5-on-5 and on the penalty kill, so it was hard not to go over him. camp and the first part of the season.” Forward Wayne Simmonds was recalled by Toronto of the American Hockey League on Friday and played right wing with center Pierre Engvall and left wing Kalle Jarnkrok in practice. Simmonds has one assist in three NHL games this season. — Dave McCarthy
