Via Boston.com. Monday night Zdeno Chara took a deflected slap shot off the face in Game 4 of The Stanley Cup Finals against the Blues. His jaw was shattered, but he got stitched up and returned to the bench for the third period looking dazed but apparently ready to go if the team doctor had cleared him. Any of us mere mortals would have been hospitalized, but Chara is a warrior. He came out for the morning skate with his Bruins teammates sporting that "Bane" like face mask today. Head coach Bruce Cassidy says it will be a game time decision before Game 5 tonight at TD Garden on whether he plays.
His teammates were in awe as they watched him get ready to come out on the ice this morning. Defenseman John Moore said, “Much is made of his professionalism, his toughness, his approach, but until you see that in the flesh, you have a whole other level of appreciation for it."
“The guy’s 42. When I’m 42, I’m certainly not going to be the first guy in the gym, weighing all my food, squatting the most on the team. Those are all the things you respect.
“You throw in the fact that what he’s going through — that’s something I’ll tell my kids about. Life lessons I’ll carry long beyond hockey.”
When he comes out for Game 5 tonight, the Garden crowd will explode...