By: Lydia Murray | Follow Me on Twitter @lydia_murray12
Earlier today, Bruins general manager Don Sweeney held a Zoom press conference regarding the beginning of Phase 2 and what’s expected next. Here’s what you need to know about it:
Player Locations + the Beginning of Phase 2
According to Logan Mullen of NESN and Matt Porter of the Boston Globe, Pastrnak, Nordstrom, Blidh, Vladar, Vaakanainen, and Zboril have all returned home to Europe. Some of them have reportedly been on the ice, but nobody specific was named.
As for all of the other players, Sweeney did not name who had participated in Phase 2 so far or even who was in the area. Coaches and management aren’t allowed to guide or watch Phase 2 practices and they’re voluntary, so it’s possible he may not even know who’s participated. But, it’s more likely in my opinion that he’s just protecting the identity of the players so people don’t know who is choosing not to return to the ice right now. The only two players we know for sure that are in Boston and have been at Warrior are Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand, as the Bruins posted a photo album of them to their official website.
A Bruins Tests Positive for COVID-19
Sweeney also discussed the unfortunate news that broke this morning, which was that the Bruins had been informed that one of their players had tested positive for COVID-19. The player was asymptomatic at the time and has since tested negative twice. For more information, check out my fellow BlackNGold writer Andrew Lindroth’s article on the situation here.
All But Miller Expected to Be Healthy
In addition to talking about the beginning of Phase 2, Sweeney said that as of right now, every Bruin except for Kevan Miller is expected to be healthy and available for the beginning of Phase 3 (training camps open), which is slated to start on July 10th. This is obviously great news, as the team had some injuries to key players at the time of the pause, including Brandon Carlo and Torey Krug. Having everyone healthy at the start will put the Bruins in a great spot to get back up to speed somewhat quickly and hopefully hold onto their top speed going into the playoffs, and then go on a deep run.
No Updates on Upcoming Free Agents
The last notable bit of news that Sweeney offered was that there was nothing new to report on the Bruins’ upcoming UFAs and RFAs. This is far from surprising since nobody knows for sure what the cap is going to look like next season. It just doesn’t make sense to negotiate contracts when you don’t know how much money you have to work with. However, I do feel bad for the players because they’re left in limbo, not knowing what their next contract will look like or if they can make it work with the Bruins.
Sweeney Applauds Chara and Bergeron’s Leadership
Finally, when asked about his thoughts on Chara and Bergeron speaking out in support of the current Black Lives Matter movement, Sweeney applauded them for commenting and, in Chara’s case, joining a protest. He said it speaks to their leadership as human beings and not just hockey players, which I wholeheartedly agree with. This further proved what Bruins fans already knew, which is that both of them are true leaders on and off the ice, and the Bruins are extremely lucky to have them.
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