Ference was drilled in the corner by Senators defenseman Chris Phillips. He was examined by doctors yesterday, which led to the diagnosis.

The 5-foot-11-inch, 189-pound Ference is no stranger to the injury list, having missed large chunks of time with various ailments since arriving in Boston with Chuck Kobasew in the trade that sent Wayne Primeau and Brad Stuart to the Flames in February of 2007.

Last season, Ference missed 35 games with a groin injury and a fractured leg. He also missed 23 games in the 2007-08 season with injuries to his core, knee, and leg.

In 2006-07 the speedy blue liner had a streak of 160 games played snapped after suffering a hand injury.

Ference, who scored his first goal of the season Tuesday, is the second of Boston’s top six defenseman to suffer a major injury this season. Mark Stuart, one of the team’s steadiest performers this season, suffered a broken sternum Dec. 14. Stuart has recently started skating but isn’t close to returning to the lineup.

Bergeron skated with a stick in his left hand but won’t be able to make passes or shoot with his right for about 10 days.

“It’s fine to skate and fine to work out,’’ said Bergeron. “I just can’t really move my thumb for a period of 10 days and then we’ll see.’’

On the bright side, the fact that Bergeron can keep up his conditioning during his time out of the lineup means when the thumb is healed, he’ll be able to jump back in practically without missing a beat.

“I’m going to keep my game shape and keep working out and keep staying strong,’’ said Bergeron. “The only thing, I’m not going to be able to pass and shoot, that’s about it, so it’s good news. I’m relieved. I didn’t know what to expect but the doctor gave me some good news so I was pretty happy. It’s never good to be injured and be off the ice but in that case, it was good news.’’

When a reporter jokingly asked if he blamed defenseman Dennis Wideman, whose shot did the damage to Bergeron’s thumb, he smiled.

“I should’ve gotten out of the way, we probably would’ve scored there,’’ he said.

“I don’t think we have that opportunity [to feel they’re out of the woods after the Ottawa win], first of all because of who we’re playing - arguably the best team in the league right now with so much depth and talent and skill and confidence,’’ said Julien. “They’ve got everything going for them this year. I know we’ve played them well in the past but this will be a real good challenge. In order to win the game, we don’t have a choice but to be at our best. There’s no reason for us to get comfortable playing Chicago.

“It’s one of those things where you’ve got to stay hungry,’’ he said. “And you’ve got to stay determined. If we can make a habit out of wanting to be the way we were [against Ottawa], as far as determined and hungry every game, you don’t have to worry so much about saying, ‘Well, did we get comfortable or not?’ We don’t because you want that every night and that’s what we’re trying to strive for right now is that kind of focus and that kind of approach to every game.’’

The Blackhawks are loaded on defense and Julien said his team is well aware of how dangerous the blue liners can be.

“Their [defense] supports the attack very well,’’ he said. “We can’t get guys caught down low. We’ve got to make sure that our feet are moving also, we can’t be standing still in the neutral zone. There have been some games where we’ve been caught standing still and guys are just blowing by. They’ve got lots of talent. They’re very active in the offensive zone. We’ve just got to be careful we don’t get caught flat-footed and the best way to beat a team like that is you play with the puck as much as you can.’’

Nancy Marrapese-Burrell can be reached at marrapese@globe.com.