Patrice Bergeron’s status still up in the air ahead of Bruins’ Stanley Cup Playoffs opener Monday
"Patrice doesn't need extra days of practice.”
Little has changed over the last few days at Warrior Ice Arena.
For the second day in a row, a majority of the Bruins’ roster took to the ice in preparation for Monday’s postseason opener against the Florida Panthers.
And for the second straight day, the Bruins’ locker room stuck to a familiar script when it came to the status of captain Patrice Bergeron.
Once again, the Bruins center did not take part in practice, with the 37-year-old pivot limited with an upper-body issue since getting pulled from Boston’s regular-season finale on Thursday night in Montreal.
“It’s not a big deal,” Brad Marchand said of Bergeron. “He’s taken rest days throughout the year just to make sure he’s feeling good and if someone is not feeling well at this time of year, then it’s just great to have the opportunity to rest up and prepare.”
Bergeron’s track record of trudging through various ailments is well-documented.
Still, Bruins general manager Don Sweeney kept his club’s options open when asked about Bergeron’s potential availability for Game 1.
“Taking an extra day again today obviously,” Sweeney said of Bergeron, who is also dealing with an illness on top of his upper-body issue. “That’s to be decided tomorrow. If he feels well enough he’ll play. … So we’re just trying to monitor that and make sure we balance it out. Patrice doesn’t need extra days of practice.”
If Bergeron is not given the green light for Monday’s playoff opener, the Bruins have contingency plans in place.
For the second straight practice, Pavel Zacha assumed first-line-center duties between Marchand and Jake DeBrusk.
A line of Marchand-Zacha-DeBrusk has only logged 14:19 of 5v5 ice time together this season. But Zacha has fared well this season when pushed back to his natural position at center, especially when slotting in for David Krejci on the second line.
The 26-year-old forward may not have the two-way acumen or faceoff proficiency that Bergeron possesses. But Zacha’s poise and playmaking should allow Boston’s top line to remain as a potent scoring unit if he’s pressed into that role.
“Pavel has assumed a lot of those responsibilities,” Sweeney said of Zacha’s reps down the middle. “And he’s handled it really well. I mean, obviously the face offs if that comes up, it’s lefties versus righties. And Patrice is one of the best in the game. So it’s an area where everybody has to dig in.
“When one of your better players is out, like we’ve played different games with Patrice this year being out and all those guys have stepped in. But that’s to be decided. So we’re not focused on that. Obviously, Pavel gets some reps that’s much needed to play with Jake and Brad, because he hasn’t played a lot with him. … That’s not something we’re really concerned about, at this point.”
The absence of Bergeron for any amount of games stands as a major hit for Boston, especially given Florida’s high-octane offense.
But whether it be Zacha’s availability or middle-six regulars like Taylor Hall, Tyler Bertuzzi, and Charlie Coyle in place, Boston’s depth is better equipped than in previous years to account for a star player missing a game or two.
“The depth is the biggest part for me and also the way we played going into the playoffs,” Bruins president Cam Neely said of what inspires his confidence in this current group. “Obviously anything can happen. But having said that, just the depth that we have and the group that we have this year has to give us a little bit more confidence than we’ve had in the past.”
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