David Krejci traveling to Florida, but Bruins not sure if he'll play in Game 6

BOSTON -- Thursday was a travel day for the Bruins, as the team made its way to Sunrise, Florida for Game 6 against the Panthers. Injured center David Krejci was part of the travel party, a sign that he might be back in the lineup when the Bruins go for a series-clinching win Friday night.

Krejci has been sidelined for the last three games with an upper-body injury. Head coach Jim Montgomery said Thursday that Krejci still has some work to do before being cleared to play.

"He's got a couple of more boxes to check before we can say he's a player," Montgomery said Thursday ahead of Boston's departure for South Florida.

Like captain Patrice Bergeron ahead of his Wednesday night return from an upper-body injury, Krejci has been skating on his own ahead of the team's practice the last few days. But he has not been skating with his teammates, which would be one of his next steps toward a return.

Perhaps that will come Friday morning when the Bruins hold a morning skate ahead of Game 6. If Krejci is cleared to return, Montgomery can go back to his usual second line with Krejci centering Pavel Zacha and David Pastrnak.

Before he was a late scratch for Game 3 against the Panthers, Krejci had one assist and was a minus-1 for the series.