BRIGHTON, Mass – It certainly doesn’t put an end to his quest to crack the NHL roster in Boston, but it would appear Kenny Agostino’s chances of making the Bruins out of training camp have taken a hit.
Agostino, 25, a former St. Louis Blues farmhand, was placed on waivers by the Bruins on Friday with the likely intent of sending him down to the AHL amid a glut of candidates for bottom-six forward roles.
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Agostino actually had a decent camp when he was on the ice: He scored the overtime game-winner against the Detroit Red Wings, and he set up David Krejci’s goal in the 5-1 preseason loss to the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday night. But he also suffered an injury in the middle of camp that knocked him out of action for a couple of days and those were key practices that a new guy entering a new organization probably needed if he wanted to make the team.
“I think he was as advertised as far as showing that he could make some plays,” said Bruce Cassidy of Agostino, who had a goal and three points in seven games with the Blues last season along with 24 goals and 83 points in the AHL last season.
“He had an injury in the middle of camp where we were going to move him around with different people in the lineup, but it didn’t work out," Cassidy said. "I didn’t see him in the AHL because he was in the other division and I didn’t see him in St. Louis last year, so there wasn’t a lot of [prior] knowledge. From what I did see he’s a smart player and he makes plays. We’re looking to upgrade the speed in our lineup and I think there were a few people in front of him.”
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Now it comes down to established players Ryan Spooner, David Backes and Riley Nash in the bottom-six and forwards Frank Vatrano, Noel Acciari, Sean Kuraly, Danton Heinen, Tim Schaller, Teddy Purcell and Matt Beleskey battling for the final four forward spots. It will be interesting to see if Agostino’s old team, the Blues, takes a flier on him in the next 24 hours given where they are with their forward depth after learning that Robby Fabbri will miss the entire season.