Marc Savard had a jump in his step following the Bruins' 4-3 series-clinching win over the Buffalo Sabres in Game 6. Savard was obviously happy that his team had advanced to the Eastern Conference semifinals for the second straight season, but on Tuesday morning, Bruins general manager Peter Chiarelli revealed that there had been another source of excitement for the Bruins' leading scorer of the last two seasons.
Savard, out since March 7 with a Grade 2 concussion, passed his second neuro-psych test Monday afternoon and then was cleared by Dr. Jeremy Schmahamann, an independent doctor, to return to game action.
Savard has been skating for more than a week and pushing hard to get back into the lineup for Game 6 or a possible Game 7 at Buffalo. He has now been rewarded with medical clearance and will play in round 2.
"He's an elite player and he's been chomping at the bit to play," Chiarelli said of Savard's persistence at getting back.
Chiarelli also pointed out that clinching the series on Monday night — as opposed to Wednesday — gives Savard even more time to get his game where it needs to be.
"The fact that we were able to clinch and allow time for him to get acclimated and a little practice I think is going to be very beneficial to Savvy and the team," he said.
Savard's return is almost the equivalent of the Bruins getting that scoring forward that the media and fans were clamoring for in March at the trade deadline, except the B's are getting that offensive threat in the playoffs instead.
"He's obviously a terrific offensive player and you've seen his performances in playoffs," Chiarelli said, referencing Savard's 19 goals in 18 playoff games. "He really works on the two-way side of the game in the playoffs. We're adding, obviously, a very good player to our mix for the next series."
