A few quick notes before tonight’s preseason tilt here at the Garden:
* Brendan Morrison has been dealing with a “crick in his neck,” according to Bruce Boudreau. It stems from the hit in Buffalo, and the team is being cautious. He’s been practicing, but hasn’t played since the preseason opener.
SEE RELATED:
* Brandon Sugden is making his preseason debut tonight. Boudreau tried to downplay the coincidence that this will be the first time that Donald Brashear faces his former mates, but that “we knew they had a tough guy.”
Boudreau also wants to see if Sugden can do more than us his fists. It would be plausible once the season starts that Sugden becomes the team’s fighter-for-hire as a recall from the minors, but he’s never played in the NHL. It is more plausible that George McPhee would go find someone else to help in that department if needed.
* Jose Theodore is in net tonight. Boudreau said he wanted to start each goalie once at home and once on the road (so by that logic Michal Neuvirth starts Sunday at the Phone Booth).
Here’s the lineup:
Ovechkin-Backstrom-Semin
Giroux-Aucoin-Clark
Laich-Steckel-Bradley
Laing-Beagle-Sugden
Erskine-Green
Schultz-Alzner
Sloan-Jurcina
Theodore
Varlamov
