Surprised Canadiens Respond To Recchi's Comments

BOSTON (CBS) - On Wednesday, Bruins forward March Recchi called out the Montreal Canadiens, saying the team "embellished" Max Pacioretty's injuries in hopes Zdeno Chara would be suspened by the NHL.

Thursday, while preparing for their showdown with the Bruins, several Canadiens said they were surprised with the 21-year veterans comments.

"I don't have any comments on that," former Bruin Hal Gill said. "We had a player that was pretty seriously injured. If you're saying anything other than 'I hope he's well and I hope he's getting better' I don't have time for it."

Canadiens Respond To Mark Recchi's Comments

"We heard those comments yesterday," Defenseman Paul Mara said. "A player with broken vertebrae was knocked on the ice for 3-4 minutes, how do you question the integrity of a hockey team and that we're embellishing it? It's really questionable coming for a guy that's 42-years old and been around the league so long. He's entitled to his opinion and we're entitled to ours. In Montreal we really know the truth."

Read: Montreal Paper: Michael Felger is Boston's "Village Idiot"

Chara was not suspended for the March 8th hit that left Pacioretty with a severe concussion and fractured vertebrae, but Recchi said the team did everything they could to get the Bruins captain punished.

"It's surprising from a guy that's been in this organization before," Mathieu Darche said of Recchi, who played in Montreal for five years during the 1990's. "But whatever, we're not worried about that. They can say whatever they want. We're not here to debate, that's off ice stuff and we're worried about what we do on ice. Whatever he wants to say, he wants to say. We don't really care."

"It's surprising a little bit to me, because Mark is a veteran and he does have a reputation," Mike Cammaleri said. "Like I said earlier, Mark would admit he's not an MD so he's not diagnosing these things."

In:
• Zdeno Chara
• Boston Bruins