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Three things that should be on the Bruins Christmas List

By Scott Roche

TORONTO, ONTARIO - AUGUST 26: Head coach Bruce Cassidy of the Boston Bruins reacts during the first period against the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game Three of the Eastern Conference Second Round during the 2020 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Scotiabank Arena on August 26, 2020 in Toronto, Ontario. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
TORONTO, ONTARIO - AUGUST 26: Head coach Bruce Cassidy of the Boston Bruins reacts during the first period against the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game Three of the Eastern Conference Second Round during the 2020 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Scotiabank Arena on August 26, 2020 in Toronto, Ontario. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /
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WINNIPEG, MB - JANUARY 31:
WINNIPEG, MB - JANUARY 31: /

1. Healthy season

This one is not starting out the way the Bruins would like, but hopefully, they get the injuries and surgery recoveries out of the way early in the season.

Marchand is questionable to begin the season on Jan. 14 at New Jersey as he is still recovering from sports hernia surgery he underwent in September. He currently has a mid-January return date, but don’t be surprised to see the Bruins take their time with him getting back into the lineup as they will need him as healthy as possible for the season sprint of 56 games in just 115 days.

The outlook for Pastrnak is a longer return timeframe. In September, he had surgery on his hip, which requires a five-month recovery period and that would take him to mid-February, a month after the puck drops on the season.

Losing one, never mind both at the same time, could be tough for the Bruins to deal with. Sure, they have in-house candidates that can hold down the fort until one or both of them return, but losing your top two point producers from a year ago in a shortened season could spell a slow start out of the gate.

As mentioned above, the Bruins will be younger on defense and have struggled with secondary scoring. Either of those could be exposed more should the Bruins get a rash on injuries throughout their roster. Aside from goaltending, they are not blessed with the deepest depth charts.

Next. Bruins: What to expect from Brad Marchand in 2021. dark

Health will go a long way in determining how the short season plays out and whether or not the Bruins are set up for a deep playoff run. If there was ever a season where Boston is able to avoid many injuries, 2021 is the year.

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