WILMINGTON - There were a couple of frustrated players in the locker room at Ristuccia Arena after yesterday's optional practice.
The Bruins have rattled off a five-game winning streak, a seven-game unbeaten stretch, and are 7-2-1 in their last 10, climbing into a tie for sixth place in the Eastern Conference, only 6 points out of first. They could be the hottest team in the NHL.
Well, OK, the fourth hottest, after Anaheim (9-1-0), Dallas (8-2-0), and New Jersey (7-1-2). And with 19 games remaining, the Bruins are only 3 points from a three-way tie for eighth. Two of those teams won't make the playoffs.
But however the points are figured, Boston has made winning a habit at a crucial time. No surprise, then, that Manny Fernandez and Patrice Bergeron want in.
Fernandez, the goalie acquired last summer to take a lead role in the rotation, only to step out of the picture to undergo left knee surgery in December, skated for the first time, though not with the team, while Bergeron continued his comeback from a concussion with more skating.
Fernandez, 33, said he felt fine, with "almost no pain."
"I was only on my skates; it was pretty basic," said Fernandez. "I think it went very well. It went exactly as I had envisioned it to."
Fernandez is feeling the push and pull of careful rehabilitation strategy conflicting with his enthusiasm to join a team building momentum.
"I'm pretty anxious to get out there," he said. "Tomorrow I've got to get them to let me go on with some equipment. Maybe in a week or two weeks, I can start seeing shots."
Fernandez gave a nod to Tim Thomas and the terrific season he has had in goal, adding he doesn't want to barge in on the successful mix of Thomas and backup Alex Auld. But his recovery can't come fast enough.
"I'm on a need-to-know basis," Fernandez said. "Every day I come in and they tell me what's going on with workouts. I try to push, but when it comes down to it, I think they know best."
Bergeron, who has missed 53 games, got a light in his eyes when the Bruins' playoff possibilities were mentioned. The deeper into spring the Bruins play, the better the chance Bergeron, and Fernandez, can get back.
"It's just great to be back on the ice," said Bergeron. "I was missing the game. It's been four long months.
"I don't want to rush it, I don't want to risk it, but it is hard to be a fan. It's hard to watch from the ninth-floor press box; it looks easy from up there. I'd love to be out there with the guys."
Also skating on his own yesterday was Stanislav Chistov, who left to play in the Russian Super League this season, but was released last month. The Bruins lost an appeal to have Chistov cleared to play in the AHL.
Currently Bruins property, he will be a restricted free agent after the season.
Coach Claude Julien's challenge is to hold his team to its current course.
"There's no doubt this time of year, especially when things are going well, it's about trying to maintain that," Julien said. "There's a lot of things to do. First of all, as long as our guys stay focused and keep working hard and keep doing the right things, you're able to give them opportunities to get their rest."
Many of the veterans skipped the practice.
"It's good to rest and recover, as long as when you do practice, you don't create lazy habits," said Julien. "Right now, just winning hockey games allows you to run things the way you'd like to. Sometimes when your team's not going in the right direction, it forces you to make some decisions that you would prefer not having to make."
Rookie Milan Lucic, who punctuated Thursday's 5-1 victory over Pittsburgh when he answered Jarkko Ruutu's challenge by pasting the Penguin, said success has followed the Bruins' willingness to buy into Julien's system, which means everyone is being responsible in all three zones. It's not the glamorous stuff - it's Marc Savard taking a hit in the corner to get to the puck, preventing an icing call and setting up P.J. Axelsson's goal; and it's Vladimir Sobotka blocking two shots and taking a slash on the forearm, all in the third period.
"At the end of the game, everyone knows they did their part to win," said Lucic. "Everyone knows that we really worked hard and earned everything that we got. We're starting to realize you have to put in that work ethic every day, game, and practice.
"That's the toughest thing, but once you get the right attitude, that sort of mentality, that's what's going to help you."
