Bergeron out of hospital, 'day-to-day'

BOSTON -- Boston Bruins center Patrice Bergeron is "day-to-day," coach Claude Julien said Sunday afternoon during his team's availability at TD Garden. Julien would not reveal the nature of the injury, saying only that it was a "body" injury.

Bergeron was hurt at some point during Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final against the Chicago Blackhawks on Saturday night. He took just two shifts in the second period and did not return for the third period. After the game, he was taken to a local hospital for "observation," according to the team.

Linemate Brad Marchand said Bergeron returned to the hotel Saturday night and joined the team for a post-game meal, reporting that he was "crushing" some food, including some french fries.

Asked to describe Bergeron's mood at the meal, Marchand said: "He's always in a good mood, but he was good."

Bergeron flew home with the team Sunday, but was not made available to the media.

It is unclear if Bergeron will be available for Game 6 at TD Garden on Monday (8 p.m. ET; NBC, CBC, RDS). Boston needs to win Game 6 to force a Game 7 on Wednesday.

"I don't know if he will skate tomorrow," Julien said. "He may. That's what day-to-day is. I'm trying to be as clear as I can be here."

The Bruins, though, insist they are not worried about Bergeron's availability. If the star two-way center can play, great. If not, the team will have to find another solution. There is no other option as the Bruins find themselves in a win-or-go-home situation for just the second time this postseason.

"Someone's going to be able to step up and play that role," Boston goalie Tuukka Rask said. "I think we feel fortunate to have that luxury."

In Game 5, it was rookie Carl Soderberg that stepped into that role, centering Marchand and Jaromir Jagr, for the majority of the final two periods. Sunday, Julien said he liked Soderberg's game, despite the fact that he was making playoff debut and playing for the first time since April 28. Julien could go back in that direction, or he could promote Chris Kelly or Rich Peverley into the third-line center role and move Soderberg back to the fourth line, where he started Game 5.

"[Bergeron] brings so much to our team, faceoffs and his defensive play and scoring some big goals," Marchand said. "A big loss for us last night and hopefully he'll be back [Monday]. You can't replace a guy like that."

For Nathan Horton, a member of Boston's top line, the time to fret is not now. With more than 24 hours before the team had to make a final determination about Bergeron's availability for Game 6, he was taking a wait-and-see approach.

"He's a big part of our team and everyone knows that," Horton said. "I'm not commenting on anything else about that because nobody knows. Guys have to step in and contribute. He's obviously a great player and we need him out there. I don't really know if he is playing or not or how he is. I guess we'll wait and see tomorrow."