Some major help could be on way for Bruins
The Bruins could get a big piece of their lineup back in action before returning to Boston.
WASHINGTON, DC – OCTOBER 08: Elias Lindholm #28 of the Boston Bruins celebrates with teammates after scoring a goal against the Washington Capitals during the third period at Capital One Arena on October 8, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
The injuries have piled up for the Bruins.
Coming into Sunday's head-to-head with San Jose, the Bruins are without their No. 1 defenseman, Charlie McAvoy, indefinitely following facial surgery. The Bruins are also without second-line forwards Viktor Arvidsson and Casey Mittelstadt, and the Bruins even lost Jeffrey Viel after a rough takedown from the Ducks' Radko Gudas in a fight in Wednesday's loss in Anaheim.
But the Bruins could be on the cusp of some good news with one of their other injured players, with Elias Lindholm a full participant in Saturday's practice ahead of the team's trek up to San Jose. It went beyond Lindholm just skating with linemates, too, as he was involved in the power-play portion of the practice. That has typically been a sign that a return to play is imminent.
“Doesn’t mean anything yet," Bruins head coach Marco Sturm said of Lindholm's return to practice. "We’ll see. We’re still going day by day, we’ll see how he feels [Saturday], how he feels [Sunday], and then go from there.”
Injured in a collision with the Sabres' Jordan Greenway back on Oct. 30, Lindholm has missed the last 10 games for the Bruins with a lower-body injury.
The initial diagnosis on Lindholm's injury indicated that it would be a few weeks for the B's top-line center. And the MRIs confirmed as much, according to the Bruins. At the time of the injury, sources told 98.5 The Sports Hub dot com that it was not considered a major injury for Lindholm and that it was likely the club would be patient and give it closer to a month for a full recovery.
Oct 30, 2025; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Bruins center Elias Lindholm (28) on the ice after an apparent injury against the Sabres at TD Garden. (Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images)
Down Lindholm, the Bruins have posted a 7-3-0 record, and have leaned on Marat Khusnutdinov as a top-six center along with Pavel Zacha. Over that 10-game run, Khusnutdinov has scored two goals and four points, and also scored the overtime winner the night that Lindholm was knocked out of play.
If Lindholm is able to return to play, there's no denying the lift he'll provide to the center position, as well as the Bruins' power play and penalty kill. Prior to the injury, seven of Lindholm's nine points came on the power play, while his faceoff percent (57.5 percent) was the fourth-best mark among centers with 200-plus faceoffs this season at the time of his injury.
