Bergeron cleared for contact
Game 2 would be earliest he returns
WILMINGTON - With about 15 minutes remaining in the first practice of the postseason at Ristuccia Arena yesterday, a straggler trudged out of the dressing room and hit the ice.
Normally, such a late entry would have drawn ugly looks, a dressing-down, and a fine. It was, however, no normal return.
In the morning, Patrice Bergeron had been cleared for full-contact practice. Upon his late arrival, the center, wearing a white sweater instead of a red non-contact jersey, wasted no time engaging teammates, participating in down-low battle drills where body contact was encouraged.
"I'll talk to the guys," Bergeron said after practice. "I'll tell them the red jersey is over now. Obviously, Montreal's not going to give me any favors."
After practice, Bergeron went back on the ice with assistant coach Doug Houda for approximately 25 minutes of conditioning work.
If he has no setbacks, Bergeron will practice again today and tomorrow, then travel to Montreal, where the first-round series against the Canadiens begins Thursday.
Bergeron has been symptom-free for more than two weeks.
"We'll see how I react to contact," Bergeron said. "That's probably the biggest test. It's great to feel good without contact. But hockey's a physical game. I think the most important thing is to be honest with myself about how I react during practice."
Regardless of how the next two practices go, Bergeron will not play in Game 1. Neither Bergeron nor the Bruins have determined his availability for Saturday's Game 2 or the following home matches at TD Banknorth Garden.
"There's no way I'm going to play on Thursday, that's for sure," Bergeron said. "After that, it's up in the air. We'll see how I feel in practice."
Yesterday morning, during his meeting with doctors at Massachusetts General Hospital, Bergeron and Bruins general manager Peter Chiarelli considered all the variables in play. The primary concern, because of the severity of the Grade 3 concussion he sustained Oct. 27, is the threat of a second head injury.
A secondary issue they discussed was Bergeron's strength and weight. He is about 8 pounds under his usual playing weight, and several strength metrics the Bruins have measured - bench press, squat - indicate that he is not as strong as he was before the injury.
But as the parties talked about the risks of the situation, it suddenly occurred to them that being cleared for full-contact practice was a significant milestone.
"I kind of broke the silence and said, 'This is great news, though - he's cleared for contact. This is tremendous in his recovery,' " Chiarelli recalled. "We all kind of broke out laughing and smiling. That's what the thing is - he's cleared for contact and he's on his way to recovery. The big step was being cleared for contact. It bodes well for the future."
Bergeron noted that as much as he wants to rejoin his team for the postseason, he has been honest with himself during the recovery process, emphasizing that head trauma is a special kind of injury.
"He wants to play," Chiarelli said. "But he's also a very rational young man. He knows he has to clear these other hurdles."
If Bergeron were to return, he would provide a dramatic boost to the Bruins, who have been challenged for offense all season. Before the injury, Bergeron was the team's best all-around forward, skating on the No. 1 power-play unit and killing penalties. The 22-year-old had three goals and four assists in 10 games. Last season, Bergeron had 22 goals and 48 assists in 77 games.
Coach Claude Julien is taking a reserved approach.
"Right now, he can't play," Julien said. "We're not going to get ahead of ourselves. I really need to deal with the players I have.
"To have the news that he can take contact is definitely a very positive thing. But there are a lot of things that can change. I'd rather be cautious than over-optimistic. We'll take it day by day."
Bergeron would not have the luxury of playing in tuneup games; he would be thrown into the postseason mix - against the Canadiens or another club if the Bruins advance to the second round - and all the pressure the playoffs bring. Bergeron appeared in seven postseason games in 2003-04, collecting one goal and three assists while registering a plus-5 rating.
"The level of play has increased and the intensity has increased," Chiarelli said. "It's going to be all up to Patrice and how he feels. How he feels his strength is, how he feels his timing is. We're being very cautious with this."
