WILMINGTON, Mass. — The Bruins weren't exactly thrilled to have their usual Sunday off replaced by a practice, but there was a bit of a silver lining for the club when they reported to work.
Joining them on the ice at Ristuccia Arena was center David Krejci, who skated with the club for the first time since suffering a concussion against St. Louis on Nov. 6.
"It's always nice to see his smiling face," joked Shawn Thornton.
Krejci was in good spirits after the workout, though he is still uncertain when he will be able to return to game action.
"I still have some testing to do," said Krejci. "I still have to talk to the trainers. I don't want to set the exact game or the date [for a return]. I'm progressing pretty well and I felt pretty good on the ice today."
Bruins coach Claude Julien noted the uncertainty that always accompanies recovering from a head injury.
"We don't really know," said Julien. "Concussions are concussions and it's really hard to pinpoint. He could have a setback or they might say we want to hold him back a little longer. That's the part we don't know.
"He's passed the test that allowed him to practice with us, but he wasn't allowed any contact," added Julien. "Hopefully that will be the next step and he gets cleared for a little bit of contact."
Krejci does feel that he is moving in the right direction, and has been encouraged by his progress in recent days. He worked out on the bike for the first time on Friday, then skated on his own Saturday before joining the team for Sunday's workout.
"I feel better every day," said Krejci. "It was a good step for me to go on the ice today with the guys. It's good progress and it's going in the right direction, but I have to talk to the trainers and tell them how I felt this morning and we'll see what the next step is."
Julien shared the sentiment of being cautiously optimistic.
"It's another step in the right direction," said Julien. "He seemed happy and we were happy to see him, so let's keep our fingers crossed and hopefully it keeps progressing."
