How Are Injuries Impacting the Boston Bruins?

Oct 25, 2014; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Boston Bruins center

(23) warms up before playing against the Toronto Maple Leafs at Air Canada Centre. The Bruins beat the Maple Leafs 4-1. Mandatory Credit: Tom Szczerbowski-USA TODAY Sports

“Our guys have got a great attitude — the guys that are playing — and that’s why they deserve a lot of credit,” Julien said.

Injury List: Zdeno Chara, Adam McQuaid, David Warsofsky, David Krejci, Brad Marchand, Chris Kelly

Five players currently makeup the Bruins injury list, three of them are the Bruins go-to leaders, their Captain and two assistant captains.  Generally the Bruins get hit with the injury bug at the end of their season, a time when it is crucial for them to play at their best as they battle their way through the playoffs rounds for their chance at the Stanley Cup.  This season, the injuries have come early and fast, hitting nearly all of the defensemen, excluding Seidenberg and Hamilton pending after being in noticeable pain last night in Montreal., and creeping among the Bruins forwards.

When news broke that Zdeno Chara would be sidelined for a couple of months, Bruins fans and reporters alike thought the worst, knowing that the rest of the roster would have to step up and show what they were made of. To everyone’s surprise, the Bruins managed to do alright, winning a stretch of 8-games in a row before an embarrassing Canada road trip. Nonetheless, they have managed. They are currently 13-9-0 on the season, good enough for 3rd in the Atlantic Division and 5th in the Eastern Conference.

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Fallen Forwards 

David Krejci was the first forward to miss practices and games as he missed the first three games of the season with a hip injury, and has since missed six out of the last seven games, 11th total, with an undisclosed injury. Brad Marchand has missed the last three-straight games and was placed on Injured Reserve, simply for the case of him not playing against the Canadiens last night. He is expected to be day-to-day with his injury, but it is also undisclosed.

Chris Kelly, the team’s lone leader left on the ice in the absence of David Krejci and Zdeno Chara, is now being sidelined with, gof igure, an undisclosed injury. The worst part, the Bruins don’t know the extent of the injury or how long he will be sidelined.Kelly suffered the injury during Friday night’s game against the Columbus Blue Jackets. He played through the games three periods, but was not a part of the team’s overtime period.

“I don’t know, I really don’t know. I could say day-to-day, but we don’t know, we don’t know right now,” said Julien. “Our medical staff has not given me any indication of how long the injury is going to take. It’s one of those that I think they’ve got to feel as the days go by.”

Kelly, who has spent some time alongside Soderberg and Eriksson as well as Lucic and Griffith in the absence of Krejci, has 2 goals and 8 points on the season with a plus-4 rating.

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Developing Prospects

With so many holes in the Bruins line up, they have had to turn their focus to the up-and-coming Providence Bruins. Currently on their roster they have Alexander Khokhlachev, Matt Lindblad, Jordan Caron, Joe Morrow, Zach Trotman and Seth Griffith getting their chance to prove themselves. So far, it hasn’t been all bad, Griffith and Morrow are coming into their own and stepping into big minutes and even bigger roles. Khokhlachev was able to show his strength, netting the Bruins game-winning shootout goal against the Blue Jackets and showed promise among the Bruins top lines. All things considered, the call-ups have done their part and are getting better with each game they suit up for. While Julien thrives on consistencey and chemistry to remain victorious, there’s no doubt that the barrage of injuries has disrupted that, but they’re working on it.

“It’s important for us as a coaching staff to really stay positive and upbeat,” said Julien, who coached his 800th career game Saturday. “Having said that, I think our players are doing a really good job of that, as well. Our guys have got a great attitude — the guys that are playing — and that’s why they deserve a lot of credit,” Julien said.

While the beginning of the season is slipping away and we are headed into a more crucial time, the Bruins inconsistencies are going to start coming to light and fast. Should the injuries keep piling up, the Bruins are going to have an even tougher time making the playoffs and having a successful Cup run. For now, they’re hoping the experience in their young call-ups will instill the confidence they need and prepare them for the road ahead.

“We’re hopefully developing some players who are going to be better down the road because of what we’re going through,” Julien said. “That’s why you’ve got to stay positive and that’s why you’ve got to stay with the program here.”