The Bruins (29-23-6, 64 points) hit the ice together on Saturday in San Jose for the first time since their 4-0 drubbing of the Montreal Canadiens last Sunday. Many players and coaches took the time as an opportunity to refresh and recharge their batteries headed into the final 24-game stretch.
"[The break] gave us a chance to relax a little bit, enjoy ourselves, and spend more time with our familes," said Zdeno Chara. "Everybody chose to spend it in the way we wanted."
"The break was awesome," said Brandon Carlo. "I got to go home and spend some time with the family. Most of my family is in Colorado, so my brothers and sisters and everyone came down for a couple days. I got to spend a little time with them, so it was cool."
Though the break was welcomed by a Bruins team who has lead the NHL in games played for much of the season, they'll need a complete, 60-minute effort to reverse an NHL trend that has seen teams go 3-10-1 in their first game following their mandated five-day bye week.
Chara noted the importance of getting back into game shape during practice on Saturday in order to combat any sluggishness against San Jose Sunday night.
"We came back today and it was a high tempo, high pace, high energy practice," said Chara. "We had a lot of drills involved, all five guys skating and handling the puck. Just reacting and getting ready for tomorrow."
Cassidy would probably have preferred to have kept playing hockey after he lead the Bruins to three victories in his first three games at the helm.
Given the nature of the time away from the rink, Cassidy had his team flying during practice, playing some three-on-three hockey to get them skating up and down and conditioning them back into game shape.
Cassidy admitted a high intensity practice could be the best way to bring his team back to the rink.
"Sometimes, you wonder with these practices when you've got one before a game - should we just go out there and just scrimmage and have fun? And let the guys get back to playing hockey?" said Cassidy.
"Generally, you're going to be rusty. It's usually your hands. So, puck management is going to be key."
The B's will look to rediscover that puck management that helped them limit opponents to just six goals over the course of their current three-game winning streak.
