Patrice Bergeron to Return for Saturday Night’s Game Against Red Wings

Patrice Bergeron‘s rehab is officially complete. 

Bruins head coach Claude Julien told reporters Friday that Bergeron will be in the lineup Saturday night when the team travels to Detroit to play the Red Wings. 

The center has been on the ice with the team throughout training camp, but he has not suited up for a game since Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final. After the Bruins were eliminated by Chicago, it was revealed that Bergeron had suffered a punctured left lung, a fractured rib, torn rib cartilage and a separated right shoulder during the postseason. 

Saturday will mark the debut of Boston’s revamped second line, with newcomer Loui Eriksson filling the spot alongside Bergeron and Brad Marchand vacated by the departure of Tyler Seguin. The three have been skating together in practice, and Eriksson said he’s excited to see how they gel together in game situations.

“He’s been a really good player to play with,” Eriksson said of Bergeron, according to Boston.com. “And it’s going to be nice to get some games with him too to see what we can do out there. That’s how we work on things.”

Bergeron’s preseason debut comes two days after the return of Gregory Campbell, who missed the final seven games of last year’s playoff run with a broken leg. Campbell logged 12:17 of ice time in 17 shifts during Thursday night’s game, an 8-2 loss to Detroit.