Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
Boston Bruins Will Send David Pastrnak To World Juniors To Play For The Czech Republic
The Boston Bruins have made the decision to sent forward David Pastrnak to Helsinki, Finland to participate in the World Junior Championships for his home country of the Czech Republic. Bruins General Manager Don Sweeney announced the team’s intention between the first and second period of the Bruins game on Saturday night against the Buffalo Sabres. The loaning of Pastrnak is contingent on the Boston Bruins not suffering any injuries prior to the transaction, as per Don Sweeney.
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David Pastrnak has been missing from game action since his last game on October 31st, and it’s clear that the Bruins are hoping the World Junior Championships will be a positive step in his conditioning process. Don Sweeney stated “He is fully healthy, and now, we need to get him back to where he can impact our lineup.” Pastrnak has recently played two games in the AHL, contributing an assist in one, but the impact that the World Junior Championships have on a player is second-to-none. Knowing what kind of an impact the tournament had on Pastrnak last year when he scored one goal and added two assists for three points in five games, the Bruins management team clearly felt like this decision was the best one to get the best possible conditioning for their young forward.
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The Czech Republic is already benefiting from a few Bruins prospects with 2015 draft picks Jakub Zboril and goaltender Daniel Vladar participating in the tournament as well. David Pastrnak joining the tournament brings the Bruins prospect total in the tournament to seven, with Brandon Carlo, Ryan Donato, and Anders Bjork playing for the United States, and Jakob Forsbacka-Karlsson playing for Sweden.
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The NHL roster freeze will end on December 28th, and the Bruins will likely make the loan as soon as they can, again, barring any injuries to roster players at the NHL level prior to the transaction. The earliest that the Bruins can get David Pastrnak back from loan would be on January 1st, but if the Czech Republic does well in the tournament, they could keep him up until the last day of the tournament which is January 5th. The Boston Bruins have done well as of late and likely won’t miss David Pastrnak too much if he plays for the extra four days, and the tournament should serve as the ultimate conditioning stint for the young Czech forward.
Follow Brandon Share-Cohen on Twitter @BShareCohen to discuss all things Bruins and sports