Following a disheartening 3-1 defeat to the Buffalo Sabres on Thursday, the supporters of the Boston Bruins braced themselves for even worse news on Friday.
Superstar defenseman Charlie McAvoy of the Boston Bruins lost the game as well as the game early in the third period after colliding with forward J.J. Peterka of the Buffalo Sabres. Jim Montgomery, the head coach of the Boston Bruins, only disclosed that his best defenseman had an upper-body injury after the game. However, based on the nature of the injury and the immediate aftermath, it seemed as though McAvoy might have had a concussion. If so, the Bruins might be without him for their Saturday afternoon game at TD Garden against the Arizona Coyotes.
When McAvoy was not practicing on Friday, things didn’t appear any more promising, but Jim Montgomery, the head coach of the Boston Bruins, soothed the public with some encouraging news during his press conference after practice.
Regarding the status of his best defenseman, the Bruins bench boss stated, “Day to day.” “We have high hopes for [Saturday].” I do wish to rule out any brain-related issues. That is the upper torso. Nothing involving the head.
Before the loss to the Sabres, the Boston Bruins placed veteran defenseman Derek Forbort on long-term injury reserve and recalled rookie puck-moving defenseman Mason Lohrei, so they were already without their mainstay defensive player and shutdown presence on their third pairing. For a team suffering from the aftermath of a severe flu virus that decimated the locker room this past week and forced goalie Jeremy Swayman out on Thursday night, the McAvoy news on Friday was crucial.
Note: The Bruins sent goalie Brandon Bussi back to the Providence Bruins on Friday afternoon after recalling him on Thursday night to replace Swayman and backup starter Linus Ullmark. That suggests that Swayman will be accessible to support his hug partner, at the very least.Sat., in Ullmark.
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