More signs of an inevitable return to the Bruins for Tuukka Rask.

It always seemed more probable than not that Tuukka Rask would make his eventual return with the Boston Bruins, but as more and more time goes by it seems inevitable that we will soon see the Finnish netminder back between the posts in Boston.

On Sunday, Bruins insider Fluto Shinzawa of The Athletic reported that Rask was back out on the ice training at the Bruins practice facility, something he has done over the last several weeks. This time however Rask was joined by both Bob Essensa and Kim Brandvold before the Bruins hit the ice for their morning skate, perhaps the clearest indication yet that he will be back with the Bruins this season. Essensa is the Bruins' goaltending coach and Brandvold is the Bruins' skating and skills coach, and it would appear they were preparing Rask for a mid-season return.

The Bruins have received inconsistent goaltending from both Linus Ullmark, who they signed to a multi-year deal in the offseason, and Jeremy Swayman and that likely made the idea of a Rask return very appealing to the Bruins' front office. Both goaltenders have improved as the season has gone on, especially in the case of Swayman, but it now seems like a forgone conclusion that Rask, an established veteran, will have his chance to claim the Bruins net this season.

Swayman, a 23 year old rookie netminder, has had 11 appearances for the Bruins this season and has a solid 2.20 goals against average and a .921 save percentage, definitely strong numbers from a rookie being thrust into a difficult role.

Linus Ullmark on the other hand has been somewhat more disappointing given the 4-year deal he signed with the Bruins at an average annual value and cap hit of $5 million per season. Over 9 appearances he has a 2.68 goals against average and a .911 save percentage and if it wasn't purely for the fact that Swayman's contract situation makes him much easier to manage, I would not have been surprised to see him demoted in the event of a return for Tuukka Rask.

Even if Ullmark serves as a backup behind Rask this season, don't be surprised if the Bruins look to clear some cap space by move him to another team in desperate need of goaltending ahead of the National Hockey League's trade deadline. A team like the Edmonton Oilers could be a potential candidate for such a move.