GLENDALE, Ariz. — The Bruins apparently dodged a damaging bullet in practice yesterday when defenseman Kevan Miller was struck on the right knee by a shot and had to be helped off the ice.

It didn’t look good, but turned out to be a funny-bone type injury, one that’s a big problem initially but quickly clears up. It appears Miller will be OK to play tonight against the Coyotes as the B’s try to bounce back after a pair of poor performances in losses to the Colorado Avalanche.

“I’m fine,” said Miller, after practice at the Gila River Arena yesterday. “I’m walking fine. I think I’ll be fine (today).”

B’s coach Bruce Cassidy saw the shot and was relieved it wasn’t worse.

“He took it on the inside of the knee, “ Cassidy said. “There’s a nerve there that stung him for a few minutes. I think when you get hit there, you can’t feel anything. It goes right down through your toes for 3-4 minutes. Listen, it could flare up on him. But right now there’s no structural damage they’re aware of.”

Medical updates

An update on winger David Backes, who’s sidelined with diverticulitis, included a troubling new twist: The possibility of surgery.

“He’s started to skate and train. So we may see him on the ice at some point,” said Cassidy. “There’s a medical decision to be made there down the road.”

Surgery?

“Yeah,” said the coach. “I don’t want to speak out of turn on that, but he is progressing in terms of his fitness.”

Meanwhile, the injured Patrice Bergeron remains out. He skated on his own, but it may take a miracle to face the Coyotes tonight.

“He’s out there skating, so that’s a good sign,” said Cassidy. “Obviously, without being able to participate in practice, you need one of those good practices before you play. He’ll be updated again (today). It doesn’t look like he’ll be in (tonight), but I don’t want to get ahead of myself. He could get up in the morning, come in and skate and pronounce himself ready. A guy like him would get the benefit of the doubt.

“But generally I think that’s a stretch without having one good practice under your belt.”

Victory needed

There will be two desperate teams on the ice tonight. The Coyotes are off to an 0-3-1 start, giving fans even less reason than usual to make the lengthy trek to this outpost far from the population centers in Phoenix and Scottsdale.

“I know they’re going to play well and play hard,” said Cassidy. “For us, I think desperate this early in the year is probably a strong word. I don’t want our guys to panic and start squeezing their sticks. I just think we need to have more urgency. I’d use that word.”

After giving up the first goal in the last two losses, Cassidy wants to see a better start.

“Give ourselves the chance to get ahead and play with the lead,” he said. “We’ve been playing from behind. It’s a bad recipe.”

Cassidy’s message to the team was simple: “We’re on the perimeter. Let’s get it to the net. Simple hockey.”

“In the third period the other night, we scored two goals (and) I don’t think we did anything spectacular other than win pucks, go to the net and be belligerent there. If that’s what it takes to get going, you’ve got to score some goals like that. Look around the league: There’s pretty goals, and there’s goals like that.

“It got us going a little bit. If we can carry that attitude forward, that we’re going to be hard to play against in front of their net offensively, then I think things will loosen up for us and we’ll get rewarded. They have to take that mindset onto the ice.”

Khudobin’s in

Anton Khudobin gets the start, coming off a strong period of relief in Denver where he stopped all nine shots he faced in the third period. Tuukka Rask will play in Vegas tomorrow. . . .

In practice, it appeared Ryan Spooner may have been dropped out of the lineup. Austin Czarnik was at center between Frank Vatrano and Matt Beleskey.