First-year Boston Bruins coach Jim Montgomery admitted he was playing "coy" when it came to Brad Marchand's return from injury well ahead of the originally anticipated schedule.
Could Montgomery be pulling the same trick when it comes to Bruins star defenseman Charlie McAvoy? After all, McAvoy, who is recovering from offseason shoulder surgery, slipped out of a non-contact jersey recently and was a full participant in Thursday morning's practice, per Bruins.com's Eric Russo.
It doesn't appear so, though, but Montgomery did provide an intriguing update on McAvoy that certainly makes it seem he will return to game action sometime this month.
"(It's) just his first week getting back into a rhythm with us," Montgomery told reporters prior to facing the New York Rangers, as seen in team-provided video. "We're just hopeful with him. No updated timeline. We have our internal process. And like we've said, he's ahead of that Dec. 1 date, but we don't know exactly. There are boxes to be checked."
Montgomery keeps an eye on McAvoy when he's on the ice even though he's not currently in the lineup. McAvoy will need to get his physical conditioning up to speed and Montgomery also makes sure to work with the 24-year-old in understanding the new defensive system.
"You just notice his instincts, they're so exceptional," Montgomery said. "I just focus myself with him with our language. So, he starts to understand like when we're saying a certain thing where we want the puck to go and stuff like that. So, he can play fast and just trust his instincts.
"When you have special players like him and (Hampus) Lindholm, they're going to do stuff that's different, that's off the team structure. But that's why they're special."
Montgomery told reporters he will pair McAvoy with Lindholm, who starred in Boston's thrilling overtime win Tuesday over the Pittsburgh Penguins. But as the coach has shown so far, he won't be afraid to split them up, either.
Montgomery pointed out that those decisions are still off in the future as he tries to guide the Bruins to their 10th win of the season Thursday night against the Rangers. Puck drop from Madison Square Garden is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET.
