It took the bus about 20 minutes to maneuver through Boston's winding streets, but the most impressive part about the driver's skills came with getting to TD Garden's loading dock. There is a narrow ramp with only a few feet of room on either side that large vehicles need to back up in order to get to the event floor of the arena. The reason backing up the ramp is necessary is because once you get to the top, there is not enough room for any large vehicles to turn around with equipment and other trucks stored in the area as well.
Upon arrival, the team went through their pre-skate routine before taking the ice for the 1 p.m. practice.
Several Avalanche players were absent from the ice, as Tyson Barrie, Matt Duchene, Gabriel Landeskog and Nathan MacKinnon were all out sick while Francois Beauchemin was dealing with a minor hand injury.
Fedor Tyutin, who was previously out with a lower-body injury, participated fully in practice and should play on Thursday against the Bruins, while Landeskog's status for the contest is questionable. The Colorado captain was also dealing with an ailment to his lower body and was supposed to take contact in the on-ice session as the final hurdle before he could return to the Avs' lineup, but the illness might delay his comeback.