A day after the Bruins learned that winger Matt Beleskey will miss six weeks with a right knee injury, forward Frank Vatrano took the ice with the team for his first limited practice of the season.
Vatrano, recovering from September surgery for torn ligaments in his right foot, skated with the team Tuesday at Warrior Ice Arena wearing the red no-contact jersey.
After compiling eight goals and 11 points in 39 games as a rookie last season, the energetic 22-year-old with the wicked shot worked hard all summer in anticipation of pushing for a top-six forward position. Instead, he hasn’t played a game this year, and his return to full participation is still weeks away.
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But Bruins coach Claude Julien said it was a boost to see him on the ice.
“Any time a guy joins a team for practice, even with the red jersey . . . it’s good to see, a step in the right direction for Frank,’’ Julien said. “That’s the best way for him right now to get up to the pace of your game, because it’s going to take a while.’’
His teammates also got a lift.
“[It’s great] to see him back on the ice after an unfortunate preseason training injury, on the ice and skating around well,’’ said David Backes. “Hopefully he’ll be available in short order to be in the lineup.
“From what I hear, he’s got one wicked shot and I’d love to see that on the ice.”
Vatrano looked eager, even a little impatient.
“This is a big step for me today,” he said. “I’m ready to get started.
“When I got the news [on surgery], it was really tough to take. I worked hard all summer to prove I had a spot on the team, so it was just a setback.
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“Now I’ve done everything I can to get back to playing, and that was one of the biggest steps. Now it’s just waiting for the news when I can start playing again.’’
"It was a big step for me to get back out there today."
— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) December 6, 2016
🎥 Frank Vatrano's full media availability: pic.twitter.com/wKsdAukIy3
Off-ice workouts and rehabilitation bring a player only so far. And while the goal-hungry Bruins (22 goals in the last 10 games, an average of 2.2 a game) have an appetite for someone with scoring touch, Vatrano has to take his time.
“There’s only so much you can do off the ice to get yourself ready for on the ice,’’ he said. “You’ve got to make sure when you’re on the ice you’re paying attention to the little things that you don’t really get to notice when you’re playing in a game, so whether it’s picking up rims along the wall or getting shots off quick or making plays, I think that’s something I need to come back to, when you haven’t done it in a while.’’
Getting involved
Julien was forthright about the play of Ryan Spooner (3-6—9 in 25 games, nice setup for an assist on a Backes goal vs. Florida Monday). The 24-year-old forward, who has bounced from one line to another this season and from center to wing, performed well against the Panthers after a season of scattershot efforts.
“It’s obvious if Ryan wants to give us those type of games, we have lots of time for him,’’ Julien said. “When he doesn’t, we just can’t afford to give him that kind of ice time.
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“There’s games where he hasn’t been as involved . . . and then he’s not helping our team. When he is playing the way he did [Monday], we can certainly use that player more than not.’’
Offense was on
The Bruins don’t often score four goals in a game, as they did against the Panthers in a 4-3 overtime victory. Of course, the team’s leading scorer, David Pastrnak (15 goals), accounted for two, the second one on a magical move in overtime with a savvy assist from David Krejci.
Krejci also set up the first-period goal by Tim Schaller, recently added to the line with Krejci and Backes. The combination may be gaining traction.
“You always like to stay with the same lines, work on some things in practices and in games,’’ Krejci said. “You get better as a line each day, so it’d be nice to stick as a line for a while and help the team offensively.’’
The Bruins offense will be tested Wednesday night in Washington. The Capitals have had particular success against the Bruins, sweeping last year’s three-game series. Goalie Braden Holtby has a 7-2-0 record against Boston.
“The recipe for scoring on NHL goalies, good goalies, doesn’t change,’’ said Backes. “It’s traffic, and net-front, and second opportunities. We were able to score four goals in a game last night; we need to replicate those types of scenarios and bury pucks the way we did and we’ll be just fine.’’
The Bruins, 15-10-1 and winners of three straight, build confidence with each win and work to prevent that confidence from escaping in a loss.
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“There’s a few more guys feeling well about their games,’’ said Backes, “and that we’re capable of putting a crooked number up like that, it bodes well going forward. But we can’t think that all of a sudden we can relax after the effort we put in. We’ve got to still get to those hard areas still, get those second chances and not take anything off; when we’ve got opportunity, it’s got to go through the back of the net.’’
Acciari practices
Fourth-liner Noel Acciari, out for a month with a lower-body injury, practiced with the team again but there was no word on whether he would make the trip to Washington.