Here's when Brad Marchand is aiming to return to Bruins' lineup originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
The Boston Bruins likely will be without Brad Marchand until around Thanksgiving.
The star left winger joined his teammates at the Boston Bruins Foundation Golf Tournament hosted by The Pinehills in Plymouth, Mass., on Thursday and gave an update on his rehab from offseason hip surgery when speaking to reporters.
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Marchand revealed he is planning to skate Friday for the first time since having his surgery, and that he's aiming to return to the Bruins lineup in late November.
"I think it's around there, the end of the month -- the last few days of November is kind of the target date. It's about six months, around there," Marchand said, per B's team reporter Eric Russo.
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Marchand, 34, has led the Bruins in scoring each of the past two seasons and five of the last six years. He is the best two-way left wing in the NHL and tallied 80 points (32 goals, 48 assists) in 70 games in 2021-22.
The most likely candidate to fill in at first-line left wing in Marchand's absence to begin the season is Pavel Zacha. The Bruins acquired the versatile forward in a trade with the New Jersey Devils in July. Top prospect Fabian Lysell also could give the B's offense a lift while Marchand is out.
"It will be tough, but I think we're in a good spot as a team," Marchand said, per Russo. "I think the toughest thing would be if the team wasn't winning or doing well, then that would be really crappy. But I don't think that's gonna be the case. I think we're gonna have a really good start. The guys look really good right now -- hoping that they put a really good push on."
