Boston Bruins rumors: When will the team return to the ice?

After months of not knowing when the upcoming NHL season would start, there finally seems to be some good news for Boston Bruins fans.

When it comes to major sports, everyone seemed to have a plan but the NHL. Thankfully now things have changed and Boston Bruins fans have a reason to be excited.

For a while talks of a 2021 season were stalled due to financial complications but that seems to be in the past now. According to multiple reports, we should be able to see some hockey starting in early January.

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The hope is that the season would start around January 13th with teams beginning to practice around the beginning of the year.

This would be quite the ramp up and the start of the season will be filled with players finding their legs and adjusting on the fly. Don’t expect to see amazing plays when the season begins.

But it will be good to see the Bruins hit the ice again. In this long and cold winter in New England, Bruins fans have been without what they crave most, live hockey. Even if we can’t be in TD Garden, we enjoy watching them on our TVs at home.

If the season was to start on the 13th, Boston would be without some key players. Likely David Pastrnak and Brad Marchand would miss the start of the campaign and could be out until February.

These two would be tough to replace. Marchand and Pastrnak were the two leading scorers for the Bruins last year. The duo combined for over 25 percent of Boston’s points.

The later the season starts the better for the Bruins. A late start to the season means fewer games without Marchand and Pastrnak.

But Tuukka Rask will be able to make his return between the pipes. David Krejci would get a full season of Ondrej Kase, and if we are lucky maybe we will see Zdeno Chara one last time.

Like a lot of teams, the 2021 season will be a challenge for Boston. They lost Torey Krug and will be without the majority of their first line. Besides veterans like Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci, players like Jake DeBrusk and Charlie Coyle will need to step up. Also on the blueline, Brandon Carlo and Matt Grzelcyk should have increased roles.

So don’t worry Boston Bruins fans, soon hockey will be back. The black and gold will be taking the ice and hopefully establishing themselves as one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference once again. It will be the perfect start to what we all hope is a better year in 2021.