Defense is taking a beating

WILMINGTON -- The Bruins lost two defensemen Thursday night in their 3-0 loss to the Montreal Canadiens and neither will be available tonight when they play the New York Islanders at the TD Banknorth Garden.

Nick Boynton was assessed a double minor and game misconduct in the second period for spearing Montreal's Mike Ribeiro and yesterday the NHL suspended the veteran blue liner one game for ''directing an inappropriate, threatening gesture" toward Ribeiro. Boynton, who will forfeit $6,010.20 in salary, will be eligible to return for tomorrow's 5 p.m. contest against the Sabres in Buffalo.

Rookie Milan Jurcina's status is murky. He suffered a left shoulder injury against Montreal and sat out most of the third period. He did not practice at the Ristuccia Center yesterday and coach Mike Sullivan said he planned to confer with his medical staff on Jurcina's status.

Defenseman David Tanabe was given yesterday off from practice but is expected to suit up tonight.

''[Tanabe] was just banged up after [Thursday night]," said Sullivan. ''We thought it was best to keep him off."

Because of the suddenly diminished blue line corps, the Bruins recalled rookie Mark Stuart from Providence. Stuart, who was Boston's first-round pick (No. 21 overall) in 2003, has 4 goals, 7 points, and 76 penalty minutes in 60 games with the Baby Bs.

The new Bruins -- forward Mariusz Czerkawski, who was claimed off waivers from Toronto, and centers Marty Reasoner and Yan Stastny, who were acquired from Edmonton in Thursday's deal for Sergei Samsonov -- are due in for today's morning skate. In anticipation, forward Ben Walter was returned to Providence. Czerkawski will wear No. 29, Reasoner No. 36, and Stastny No. 43 . . . Tim Thomas has lost his last five starts and seven of his last eight, but Sullivan has elected to go with him against the Islanders instead of Andrew Raycroft, who is 1-1 in his two starts since the Olympic break . . . Brad Isbister, who has been sidelined since Jan. 26 because of a sprained ankle, is back skating and Sullivan said the left wing will begin practicing without restrictions. ''He's doing starts and stops," Sullivan said. ''He's ready for the reactionary type stuff. I think that's the last step before game competition." . . . Goalie Hannu Toivonen, who has been on the shelf because of a sprained ankle, put on his gear for the first time since getting hurt Jan. 5 against Ottawa. ''I felt pretty good," said Toivonen, still a ways from a return. ''It was nice to get back out there again. It's one of the steps forward but there are still a couple of steps to be taken. It's a good thing at least to put the gear on and go out for a little while. Hopefully [today] will be another good day." . . . Left wing P.J. Axelsson, who injured his left knee March 1 against Carolina, hasn't started skating but expects to next week. ''It's getting a lot better, the swelling is down a lot," Axelsson said. ''So that's a good sign. It's tough to say a timetable for it but I think it's going to progress every day and hopefully when I get on the ice I can probably tell a little bit more how it feels." General manager Mike O'Connell said he's been in touch with Axelsson's agent -- Neil Abbott -- about a contract extension for the veteran, who has been a Bruin his entire eight-year career. ''Hopefully we can get something done," Axelsson said . . . The Bruins face three consecutive teams who are ahead of them in the standings -- the Islanders, the Sabres, and the Maple Leafs, over the next four days. ''We believe we can really put together a good run here at the end," said veteran forward Tom Fitzgerald. ''Then, wherever the cards lie, we can look back and say we gave it everything we had. It's about 20 individuals bringing everything they have." It's as if the Bruins are at the base of the Grand Canyon, needing to scale their way to the top to make it to the postseason. They realize they can't do it all at once but are trying to take one step up at a time. ''We can't just make one giant leap out of it," said Fitzgerald. ''Each step is a shift into a period and then the game, one at a time. We've got to win our games. We feel good about ourselves, we believe in one another. You've got a job and you have to go out and do your job and play as smart as you can and play as hard as you can."