Pat Maroon practiced with the Boston Bruins for the first time since the Black and Gold acquired the big-bodied winger ahead of the NFL trade deadline.
Maroon, who had back surgery in February, skated on his own last week and joined teammates at Warrior Ice Arena on Monday.
Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery offered an update on Maroon, and revealed the first timeline as it pertains to his return.
“He is making the steps to get closer,” Montgomery told reporters, per the Bruins. “I think when he first got here we said week to week, we knew it was going to be a couple of weeks. Now it really is week to week. And as he hits more of the steps and milestones, it will become day to day.”
Montgomery would not confirm whether Maroon would play in a regular-season game before the start of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, but said “it’s looking that way.” Boston has seven regular-season games remaining. Montgomery specifically pointed to Boston’s contest against the Pittsburgh Penguins on April 13, the team’s third-to-last regular-season game, as a best-case scenario.
Montgomery and the Bruins would like to see Maroon take the ice before the postseason, but Boston’s bench boss indicated it was not a necessity.
“Guys that are veteran players, that have played a lot of playoff games, that know how to win, you would like them to have games, but it’s not necessary,” Montgomery said. “They know what it takes to win. They know their role. They relish their role. They understand how to manage games. And it’s a big reason why we picked him up.”
Montgomery is not yet predicting where Maroon will slot into the lineup. There are too many moving parts, Montgomery said, with other forwards and defensemen still competing for consistent spots.
The Bruins will take the ice against the Nashville Predators on Tuesday night with puck drop scheduled for 8 p.m. ET. You can watch it live on NESN after an hour of pregame coverage. Boston then will travel to Carolina before returning home for a two-game homestand.
