Recovering Zdeno Chara Skates On His Own (Literally) At Bruins Practice Facility
BOSTON (CBS) -- As Zdeno Chara recovers from an upper-body injury that listed him as day-to-day, the Bruins captain took the ice Tuesday morning and skated on his own at the Bruins practice facility at Ristuccia Arena in Wilmington.
Literally, on his own. Just Chara and the ice. Like Rocky Balboa's solitary sunrise.
It was the second straight day that Chara skated by himself before team sessions, said CSNNE Bruins insider Joe Haggerty. According to reports, Chara mostly did basic skating drills Tuesday to get a feel for his status after the injury, believed to be a rib or back issue.
Zdeno Chara getting out there early before the rest of the group pic.twitter.com/DnIWf0n4gB
— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) September 29, 2015
Chara literally skating on his own this morning -- no trainers, coaches, etc. Just one rink, one stick, one puck, one man.
— Matt Kalman (@MattKalman) September 29, 2015
Coach Claude Julien said Monday that Chara is "progressing" and that "things are going better as expected" in his recovery.
"Like anything else, we'll be more cautious than anything," Julien added.
Assuming Chara doesn't suffer any setbacks with his injury, things are looking up for his chances of suiting up for the October 8 season opener at the TD Garden against the Winnipeg Jets. But it's highly likely that he won't be on the ice for the Bruins' final two preseason games, Wednesday at the New York Rangers and October 2nd at the Washington Capitals.
UPDATE: Chara will not play in tomorrow's game against the Rangers but is not ruled out for the preseason finale at Washington.
Julien also said Chara will not play tomorrow but is not ruled out for preseason finale vs. WSH on Friday
— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) September 29, 2015
I hypothesized on Monday that the Bruins will likely need to play without Chara more this upcoming season, whether because of further injury or to rest him and keep the captain fresh for the stretch run. Clearly, the Bruins do and should have the big picture in mind with Chara's recovery.
As he always has throughout his 17-year career, Chara is working extra hard to recover from his injury and stay in game shape. I'm still skeptical that he can stay at 100 percent for a full season at this stage of his career, but if anyone can gut it out through injuries and the typical grind of an NHL season, it's Chara.
Matt Dolloff is a writer for CBSBostonSports.com and is day-to-day with a bruised ego. His opinions do not necessarily reflect that of CBS or 98.5 The Sports Hub. Read more from Matt here. Follow him on Twitter @mattdolloff and email him at mdolloff@985thesportshub.com.