The way the Bruins offense is going these days, if you score one goal you might get a promotion.

That’s what's happening for rookie wing Ryan Donato, who had one of Boston’s goals in its 4-2 loss to Detroit on Saturday. Donato played some of that game on the second line with David Krejci at center and Jake DeBrusk at right wing. Donato then practiced in that spot Monday.

Coach Bruce Cassidy, whose team is tied for 26th in the NHL is goals scored per game (2.69), said Donato will likely start there Tuesday on the road against the Florida Panthers.

“We’re going to try it with Ryan,” Cassidy said. “I thought he did a good job on the offensive side of things. Listen, he wants to score every time he’s on the ice. That hasn’t changed, we’re just trying to clean up the rest. When you’re up in the lineup you’re seeing better defensemen, you’re probably playing against most of the time the other team’s second line or first line, so you’ve got to make sure you’re accountable the other way. So we’re going to work on him with that. But I liked his compete on the puck, I liked that he shot, I liked that he scored again. So we’ll give it a whirl.”

Donato recognizes what he has to do other than score to make sure he’s not replaced on the second line during the Panthers game by Joakim Nordstrom or Danton Heinen, the two players he’s been swapping spots with a little since his return from Providence of the AHL two games ago.

“Just being good on the walls. I think that’s one of the biggest things, being good on the walls,” said Donato, who has two goals in 13 games this season. “I think every young guy has to kind of adapt to the NHL game. It’s not easy on the walls up there with those big defensemen. So definitely one of those things and I think just making sure [I’m being] consistent, I want to make sure when I’m out there every shift giving it my all and always being in the right spots.”

Defensive healing

Defenseman Charlie McAvoy took contact in practice for the first time since he left the lineup with a concussion suffered in the Oct. 18 game at Edmonton. There’s still no timetable for his return.

“He’s one step closer,” said Cassidy, who added that McAvoy would go on the Bruins’ road trip to Florida and Tampa Bay. ...

Torey Krug took a “maintenance day” and is expected to be in the lineup against the Panthers.

“He’s traveling ... I assume he’ll play, that’s the plan,” Cassidy said.

JFK returns

After playing for Providence on Sunday, Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson returned to Boston and traveled with the team to Florida. Forsbacka Karlsson was a healthy scratch the past two games with Boston and the Bruins sent him down to make sure he didn't get rusty because they weren't sure when they would use him again.

“We’ll see what our lineup looks like [Tuesday], I don’t want to promise whether he’ll be in or out. But we wanted to get him a game ... it’s important that he keeps active,” Cassidy said.