Brandon Carlo on Monday confirmed what many of us thought: He suffered a concussion against the Arizona Coyotes.
The Boston Bruins defenseman was hit Oct. 15 and initially remained in the 6-3 win, but he was not present for the final two periods. Originally ruled an upper-body injury, B's head coach Jim Montgomery seemed optimistic about the severity of Carlo's ailment. Carlo has been sidelined for the last four games but returned to practice wearing a regular sweater Monday morning.
"It's unfortunate," Carlo told reporters of his concussion at Warrior Ice Arena. "It's been something I've experienced a couple times throughout my career."
"A couple times" equals five in Carlo's career since 2017 -- and his first since June 2021, when he was hit by Cal Clutterbuck in Game 3 of the Bruins' second-round playoff series against the New York Islanders. The hit knocked Carlo out of the remainder of the series, which the Bruins lost in five games.
Carlo detailed how he felt after the hit against Arizona, noting he saw stars but felt much better the day after it happened.
"I took the hit and there have been times where you'll take a hit and kind of see stars, but as I was skating up the ice, I really couldn't see the play," Carlo told reporters. "Once I got to the far blue line, I don't know if one of my eyes was black, but I couldn't really assess what was going on down the ice. So, I went back to the locker room to let that cool off and that's when doctors diagnosed it.
" ... I feel like through this I've progressed really well and I'm happy about that. I would say the third day after I was out of that game, I was pretty much back to normal, and I've felt really good since."
Despite suffering five concussions, Carlo isn't concerned about his recovery or that it will impact how he plays the game of hockey.
"Through talking with the doctors and just the way I've recovered through my concussions, it's not something to be too concerned about at this point," Carlo told reporters. "I'm feeling good in that regard and definitely still feel confident going out there and playing a physical game.
" ... I think from a hockey aspect, I still feel very good and not unsafe to play by any means, but with these things it's hard because you want to be reliable for your team, and also be reliable for my friends and family, which is a component of life that you need to take into account."
Losing Carlo certainly isn't ideal for a Bruins team that already is shorthanded on defense with Charlie McAvoy also sidelined, but making sure he is 100% healthy before returning to game action is the club's top priority. Montgomery told reporters he'd be cautious with Carlo in getting him back into the lineup, and it appears Carlo will be back on the blueline Tuesday.
The Bruins return to action Tuesday night when they host the Dallas Stars. Puck drop from TD Garden is set for 7 p.m. ET, and you can catch all the action beginning at 6 p.m. on NESN.
