"If they're not able to play games, it's a long way to go," Cassidy said of the two defensemen. "I'm not saying they will or won't be able to play preseason] games, but when we made this decision probably a month ago, we weren't sure."
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Krug broke his ankle during Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Second Round against the Tampa Bay Lightning. He could be healthy in time to play preseason games, but the Bruins didn't want to push his recovery. For Chara, 41, it's about avoiding wear and tear.
"Never been (to China)," Chara said. "Of course it's one of those things that (I) would love to explore one day, but at this point I'm fine with staying back and focusing on having a good training camp and getting ready for the season."
The Bruins will play the Calgary Flames in games in Beijing and Shenzhen, China, on Sept. 15 and Sept. 19.
Center Patrice Bergeron, who had groin surgery in June, also will not go on the trip so he can continue to receive treatment in hopes of being ready for the season opener at the Washington Capitals on Oct. 3.
Forwards Noel Acciari, Anders Bjork, Sean Kuraly and Danton Heinen also will not travel to China.
Acciari had offseason sports hernia surgery. Kuraly and Heinen will not make the trip after being part of a Bruins promotional trip to China in July. Bjork is recovering from surgery on his left shoulder Feb. 20.
The Bruins will take three young centers with them to China:
Jack Studnicka
, 19; Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson, 21; and
Trent Frederic
, 20. Each is a candidate for the third-line center spot.
Cassidy admitted that assessing his team early in training camp could be difficult, but assistant coach Joe Sacco will remain in North America, along with the coaching staff from Providence of the American Hockey League, to make sure the evaluation process goes smoothly.
"I lose two games of viewing for guys that are not going to China," Cassidy said. "You lose watching them in practice. So it does complicate it, it's 10 days. Now that's why Joe's staying behind. We trust his judgement, he'll give us updates. We can watch the games, it's just you can't be in two places at once. That's the reality of it; a lot of different teams go through it. But there's probably two or three guys you'd like to keep a closer eye on, and that may grow after rookie camp. It may be less. You may find out after rookie camp, 'Hey, this guy's just not ready right now.'"
Bruins forward David Pastrnak has been to China on previous Bruins promotional trips and will be part of the NHL China Games. He said his teammates haven't asked him too much about his experiences there yet, but he expects they'll inquire some when the trip gets closer.
He knows the splitting of the Bruins roster for the trip can be a challenge, but it's one well worth it for the experience.
"Obviously you want to stick together as a team and be around all the guys, but it is what it is and we're going to split up for a couple of days like that," he said. "But when we come back hopefully we start focusing to becoming together as a group and it's nice. It's going to be a great experience going to China and we are excited for it."
