Over at NHL.com, John Kreiser did a great job today of answering one key question for all 30 of the teams in the league, including the Boston Bruins.

In terms of the Bruins, Kreiser asked and answered: “How do they take the next step?” (more…)

Sturm

During an offseason full of free-agent signings and trades all around the league, including in Boston, it was easy to overlook one addition the Bruins will be making without swinging a deal.

Winger Marco Sturm will be back to pursue his elusive target of 30 goals again this season after knee surgery cut short his season after just 19 games. (more…)

Krejci

There’s only positive news in regard to rehabilitating Boston Bruins center David Krejci.

Offseason hip surgery was a success and Krejci said today after an informal skate at Ristuccia Arena in Wilmington, Mass., that he’s been working out in the gym for a while now and that physically he’s 100 percent. (more…)

This is the first in a series of catch-up stories with members of the Boston Bruins as they make their way back to the Boston area for informal, pre-training camp captains’ practices.

Last year was a bit of a transition for Boston Bruins defenseman Zdeno Chara, as he not only had to contend with being the most vital piece of a team that won the Eastern Conference but also had to adapt to being a father when his first daughter was born in the midst of the Bruins’ postseason run. (more…)

Chara

WILMINGTON — Boston Bruins captain Zdeno Chara didn’t take the ice today at Ristuccia Arena but he took a few minutes to catch up with the assembled media. On the Phil Kessel situation, Chara didn’t want to cause any controversy with his take on the restricted free agent’s ongoing contract situation.

“It’s part of the thing that every player has to realize and decide what he wants to do,” Chara said. “And obviously the rest of it is up to the management and Phil. So as a player I can’t really wish anything more than have both sides be happy. But we’ll see what’s going to happen.”

After a summer that went the fastest of any I’ve lived through, a handful of Boston Bruins players are going to take the ice here at Ristuccia Arena in Wilmington, Mass., for the club’s first informal captains’ practice.

I’ll post a few updates over the next hour or so on my Twitter. And then I’ll have updates on some of the players over the course of the day.

The Bruins are expected to skate most of the week with more players arriving every day. And The Bruins Blog will be your source for complete coverage of the sessions.

Here are some quick links from around the division on the morning of the Boston Bruins’ first informal captains’ practice.

The Toronto Maple Leafs have made official their position that it would take a unanimous vote of the Board of Governors to allow the Phoenix Coyotes, or any team, to move into the Leafs’ territory. (more…)

Rush to your local newsstand folks to read the little bit of love the Sept. 7, 2009 issue of The Hockey News (as if you don’t already get this in the mail) throws the way of The Bruins Blog. (more…)

Heatley

In today’s Ottawa Sun, Bruce Garrioch reports that even though the San Jose Sharks have cleared enough cap space to accommodate a trade for Senators snipers Dany Heatley, Garrioch’s sources say the Sharks are going to look elsewhere to use that available room when they do. (more…)

It’s all well and good that the San Jose Sharks today cleared nearly $5 million in cap space by trading defensemen Christian Ehrhoff and Brad Lukowich to Vancouver for a couple prospects.

Immediately speculation began that the Sharks were making room for the addition of either disgruntled Ottawa forward Dany Heatley or Boston Bruins restricted free agent Phil Kessel. But take a glance at the San Jose roster and salary list and try to find me a fit for the Bruins as a trade partner. I don’t see one. (more…)

Former Boston Bruins captain Jason Allison will attend Toronto Maple Leafs training camp on a tryout basis, according to The Globe and Mail.

Allison hasn’t played in the NHL since the 2005-06 season.That season he put up 17-43-60 totals in 66 games, his only campaign with Toronto. A veteran of more than 550 NHL regular season games, Allison spent parts of five seasons in Boston and posted 105 goals. (more…)

Here’s a new element of my site that I hope to turn into a “Rant of the Week” feature as the season unfolds. But for right now, here’s the best rant I received from a reader this week. Paul from Pittsfield, Mass., wrote in to ask me if the Boston Bruins’ rookie tournament games would be televised anywhere, including NHL Network. When I told him there would not be TV coverage, here’s how he responded. (more…)

As a former Memorial Cup champion and MVP, and a player that personifies the nose-to-the-grindstone sort of hockey every young Canadian aspires to play, Milan Lucic has been a darling of the media from North of the Border from even before he became an NHL sensation.

Lucic’s attendance at the Hockey Canada Olympic orientation camp has provided Canadian writers with the opportunity to rekindle their admiration for Lucic. George Johnson of the Calgary Herald today looks at Lucic’s desire to hit someone at the contact-free camp. (more…)

The Boston Bruins today released their roster and schedule for rookie camp, which will take place in Kitchener, Ontario.

The Bruins’ rookies will report to Wilmington, Mass., Sept. 5 for off-ice testing and then will travel to Kitchener. After a practice Sept. 6, the 24-player team will play games against squads went by Toronto, Pittsburgh and Ottawa over the course of the week. (more…)