Tuukka Rask Remains Out Due To Injury
BOSTON (CBS) -- The Bruins are still without their No. 1 goaltender, and they're not sure when they'll get him back.
Tuukka Rask aggravated an injury last Thursday, which forced him to leave the Bruins' eventual overtime loss to the Islanders after just one period. He's yet to return to game action, and head coach Bruce Cassidy said Monday that the goalie has yet to return to practice.
For now, Rask has been ruled out of Boston's game against the Devils on Tuesday night.
"Tuukka wasn't on the ice today, so he won't play tomorrow. As Tuukka gets back into practice, we'll determine when his next game will be," Cassidy said. "My guess is, obviously, closer to later in the week. But until he's practicing, don't know. I tried to speculate before on that, didn't think there was much going on, but obviously it's a more serious injury than we first anticipated. So no use going down that road until he's at full practice and has had a certain amount of work."
While the Bruins' most pressing issues at the time involve goal scoring, they could really use their top goaltender back soon, as their schedule is jam-packed. The team does not have consecutive days off for the rest of the season, and they have six back-to-backs between now and mid-May.
Including the game that he left early, Rask played in just three games in the month of March.
The specifics of Rask's injury aren't know. The team has described it only as an upper-body injury.
The Bruins have been employing Jaroslav Halak and Dan Vladar in net during Rask's absence. Vladar -- a third-round pick by Boston in 2015 -- is 2-0-0 with a .952 save percentage and a 1.50 GAA in his first two NHL starts.
