Per ESPN Boston:
Boston Bruins coach Claude Julien confirmed a rumor that had been circulating for a day: No. 2 overall pick Tyler Seguin is a healthy scratch for Wednesday night’s game against the Montreal Canadiens.Following the team’s morning skate at TD Garden, Julien was asked if the slumping forward could benefit from watching the game from a box over the ice.
“I don’t think we can overanalyze this guy. We have to sit somebody out and I know who he is, I know where he was drafted and I know all that stuff,” Julien said. “I think right now we’ve got [Jordan] Caron who we feel is a good fit on that fourth line and [Zach] Hamill is here to have a look at. Here’s a guy who’s a third-year pro and he needs to have a look too. Right now that’s the choice we’ve made.”
Seguin has 17 points in 51 games but only one goal in his last 11 games and has been on the ice for less than 10 minutes in the last four games. Julien was asked if perhaps the physical and mental rigors of the NHL have caught up to the 19-year-old rookie.
“It could be,” he answered. “There’s a lot on his plate right now and I think that’s what people have to understand. I know he’s lost a bit of his edge, and there have been times when he’s lost the puck when he’s a guy that should be able to hold onto it. And there are parts of his game that have slipped a little bit. But that doesn’t change the outlook of what we think of him.
“It’s just a matter of I think it’s a phase he’s going through this year, and it’s a lot different at this level than what he’s been used to. And it’s never a bad thing to watch, never a bad thing to get a rest at this time of year because we know that players do get tired after 50-plus games and the travel and everything that goes along [with it].”
Prior to Julien’s announcement that Seguin would be scratched, the youngster told the media he understood his recent situation and diminished playing time.
“I gotta earn everything else I get,” Seguin said. “Whether it’s five or 10 minutes a night, I gotta be taking advantage of it all. Even if I’m sitting on the bench for a while, I gotta be able to get my legs going, and that’s something I’m not used to. But it’s something I gotta change.”
