Zdeno Chara: 'I'm Fine ... Just Needed A Couple Of Stitches'

By Michael Hurley, CBS Boston

BOSTON (CBS) -- The Stanley Cup Final is often a test of will, and that's no cliche. When the calendar hits late May, players brush off injuries -- major and minor -- every year in order to chase their lifelong goal.

So, if you were concerned that a bloody forearm off a blocked shot was going to affect Zdeno Chara in any way, you'd be mistaken.

The 42-year-old Bruins captain who missed Game 4 of the conference finals due to an undisclosed injury blocked a shot late in the Bruins' 4-2 win in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final over the Blues on Monday night. The Vladimir Tarasenko shot left Chara bleeding and, obviously, in some pain.

And whenever blood spreads on social media, concern rises. But Chara dismissed any of that concern and quickly shut down any further discussion about the "injury."

"Yeah, I'm fine," Chara stated after his 19:38 of ice time in Game 1, during which he recorded an assist. "I just got a cut. So, I just needed a couple of stitches."

So, that's that. Stitches? It's going to take a lot more than that to keep Chara off the ice in the Stanley Cup Final.

In:
• Zdeno Chara
• Boston Bruins
• NHL