Big update on Zdeno Chara from Bruins' Monday morning practice.

Big update for the Bruins.

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HockeyFeed
Published 4 years ago
Big update on Zdeno Chara from Bruins' Monday morning practice.
Dorn Byg/CSM/Zuma

This is the good news that Bruins fans have been waiting for. 

Although Boston Bruins general manager Don Sweeney made it clear that he fully expected Boston Bruins captain Zdeno Chara to be ready to go come the Stanley Cup Final there remained concerns about his health. The fact that Chara missed a playoff game in which his team had a chance to clinch a series it an of itself spoke to the fact that he was hurting, and following that absence he had not returned to the ice with the majority of his teammates.

There were some positive signs over the weekend however as Chara resumed skating, however even then he was limited to doing so before his teammates practiced. Chara in fact had not participated in a full practice since the injury that sidelined him, but that all changed on Monday morning when the Bruins captain once again took to the ice as part of the team's top defensive pairing. This is obviously tremendous news for the Bruins fan base and following the practice Bruins head coach Bruce Cassidy seemed very pleased with what he was seeing out of his big man.

“[Chara] was good,” confirmed Bruce Cassidy as per NBC sports. “He went through practice without any issues, so I think tomorrow will be a better day to see if he gets any stiffness or soreness. He’ll get some rest [on Tuesday] and get ready to go for Wednesday.”

The fact that the Bruins have such a long layoff between their last game in the Eastern Conference Final and the first game of the Stanley Cup Final will no doubt help Chara. The Bruins big man made it clear that he is not rushing the process, likely due in large part to the extra time he has, although he did admit that it was extremely hard for him to sit out a playoff game. 

“I’m taking it one day at a time. [Tuesday] is an off day and then we’ll get back on it Wednesday,” said Chara. “It was hard. I’m not going to lie. You’re watching [a playoff game] and you want to be playing. You want to be involved. For sure it was something where I was feeling that anxiousness to play, but guys did a great job winning the game.”

No doubt the Bruins will be thrilled to have him back.

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