The Boston Bruins announced that centre and team captain Patrice Bergeron missed Fridays’ game against the Buffalo Sabres with a lower-body injury. Boston head coach Bruce Cassidy didn’t give a time frame of when Bergeron would return to the lineup.
UPDATE: Patrice Bergeron (lower body) will not play in tonight's game.
— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) April 23, 2021
Patrice Bergeron Out
It’s not sure the exact moment the Boston captain got hurt. However, he did take a shot off of his foot in previous game against Buffalo. The team didn’t have a morning skate as it was playing in the second night of back-to-back games against the Sabres. Cassidy took him out of the lineup as a late scratch.
So far this season, Bergeron has scored 18 goals and 23 assists for 41 points in 45 games. The Ancienne-Lorette, Quebec native also has 14 penalty minutes. His possession numbers are 61.2 percent Corsi and a relative Corsi of 10.7
Over his 17-year NHL career, the 35-year-old has only played for the Bruins. He has 370 goals and 540 assists for 910 career points in 1,134 career games. Boston took him the second round, 45th overall of the 2003 NHL Draft.
Bergeron is a four-time Selke Trophy winner for the league’s best defensive forward. He’s also won the King Clancy Trophy for leadership charity work and helped guide the Bruins to the Stanley Cup in 2011.
What This Means for the Future
Charlie Coyle got the first-line centre role in a 6-4 loss to the Sabres. Buffalo got out to a 5-1 lead before making the game respectable with three third-period goals.
Boston will no doubt miss his leadership and defensive presence on the ice, as he’s key to winning faceoffs and grinding out games for the club.
The Bruins sit six points ahead of the New York Rangers for the fourth and final playoff spot in the Mass Mutual East Division. Boston does have a pair of games in hand on New York. However, the Bruins would love to have their captain back sooner rather than later.
