The Condor is back.
Boston Bruins' imposingly large defenseman Zdeno Chara returned to the lineup on Tuesday evening after a one game hiatus, just in time to have a center-ice view of a Bruins' defensive collapse against the New York Islanders, Boston yielding four unanswered goals to drop a 5-3 decision.
Chara's mysterious injury remained ambiguous, but he also sustained a small cut on his cheekbone during the game, taking a biscuit to the mug - in typical Bruins' fashion skating unassisted to the bench, then returning for his next shift.
“If you look at it, it is not always the case that you’re going to be 100 percent,” Chara told the Boston Globe on Tuesday. “A lot of players go through that. And that’s just the way it is. You’re going to have to battle through some aches and pains, but I think it’s pretty common in this sport or any kind of sport.”
It's common knowledge that the Bruins had planned on limiting the 36-year-old's ice time this season to preserve his old bones for the post-season, but his ice time has actually increased, albeit by just a few seconds.
Chara is widely regarded as the most feared defenseman in the game, but is missing his linemate, stay-at-home blue liner Dennis Seidenberg, who tore both his ACL and MCL late in last Friday's win over the Ottawa Senators, so Chara's return hardly gets the Bruins out of the injury woods - but news that defenseman Dougie Hamilton has been cleared for action after being shelved for three weeks makes the outlook a little brighter.
The big Czech blue liner has missed just one game this season and has nine goals and an equal number of helpers while sporting a plus-four rating.
http://www.sportsinjuryalert.com/2014/01/bruins-zdeno-chara-returns-after-one.html
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