Chara Joins Pregame Skate, But Remains Out vs. Canes

BOSTON- Captain Zdeno Chara was back on the ice with the team for pregame skate on Thursday morning, but will not be in the lineup as the Bruins host the Carolina Hurricanes.
Game time at TD Garden is set for 7:00 p.m. ET (NESN, 98.5 The Sports Hub).
Thursday marked Chara's first skate with the team since
sustaining a lower-body injury
on Nov. 22 against the St. Louis Blues. He'll miss his fifth straight game.
"He's out there skating, but he's not playing tonight," Head Coach Claude Julien said pregame.

The Bruins also remain without defenseman John-Michael Liles, who
suffered a concussion
on Sunday (Nov. 27) against the Tampa Bay Lightning and is out indefinitely.
After the initial adjustment without Chara, and then without Liles, the Bruins defense corps has responded, along with the rest of the team.
They gave up two early goals in Philadelphia on Tuesday night in their eventual 3-2 shootout loss - one on the power play and one at even strength - but tightened up for the rest of the game and got strong goaltending from Tuukka Rask.
"At the same time, I think we really minimized a scoring team's opportunity that night - they didn't have as many scoring chances as they normally do - so I think right there, again, it's a credit to our team," said Julien. "Not just the back end, but doing it by committee, but those guys on the back end are part of that committee and they're doing a decent job."
With Chara and Liles out, the defense pairs appeared to be the same as Tuesday night, as evidenced by line rushes during pregame skate. Torey Krug and Adam McQuaid served as a pair, while Kevan Miller was paired wit Brandon Carlo, and Joe Morrow was alongside Colin Miller.

Acciari Joins Pregame Skate

Along with Chara, forward Noel Acciari joined the team on the ice for the first time since
suffering a lower-body injury
. The Bruins had announced on Nov. 10 that Acciari would miss approximately four weeks with the injury.
"He hasn't been cleared by our medical staff," said Julien. "Skating with us is a good sign - if he's there, it's because he's inching closer."
Julien didn't know when he would start taking contact, but that would be the natural next step, getting into a full practice and not just a morning skate.
"So we'll see where he is after today," said Julien.

Power Play Coming Along

The Bruins will be facing the league's top penalty kill on Thursday night, when the Carolina Hurricanes come to TD Garden. The Canes have only allowed six power play goals through 22 games on 58 attempts.
Boston's power play last converted against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Sunday. The man-advantage is 20th in the NHL with 11 goals on 71 opportunities. David Pastrnak has scored four of them.
"Well, it's coming along," said Julien. "You'd like to see it get better, but at the same time, it's better than it was earlier on, we're getting more shots, we're getting more opportunities. I think if we keep working hard at finishing better, it will help a lot - that's 5-on-5, and the power play. The opportunities, when you look at them, are there."
"Again, just confidence of scoring is going to make a big difference for the power play."

Nash Facing Former Team

Riley Nash will be facing his former team for the first time on Thursday night. The forward spent his first five NHL seasons with Carolina, playing in 242 games as a Hurricane before signing with the Bruins as a free agent in the offseason.
Nash has been mostly centering the third line, with Matt Beleskey and Austin Czarnik on his wings, and has a goal and three assists through 23 games this season.
"It's going to be different," smiled Nash. "This is my first time doing this, so it will be a unique experience, but on the other hand, it's just another game."
"It will be fun out there, seeing a couple of familiar faces," said Nash, who used to be roommates with defenseman Justin Faulk. "I'm used to battling them in practice in the corners, but not in an actual game, so I'm sure there will be a couple of things said, all in good fun, so it should be a good time."

Pregame Skate Lines and Defense Pairings 12/1

Brad Marchand - Patrice Bergeron - David Pastrnak
Tim Schaller - David Krejci - David Backes
Matt Beleskey - Riley Nash - Austin Czarnik
Ryan Spooner - Dominic Moore - Jimmy Hayes
Torey Krug - Adam McQuaid
Kevan Miller - Brandon Carlo
Joe Morrow - Colin Miller
Projected Starter: Tuukka Rask // Backup: Anton Khudobin
Scratches: Noel Acciari (lower body), Zdeno Chara (lower body)