Marc Savard of the Boston Bruins last played an NHL game on Jan. 22 when he suffered his second concussion in less than a year after taking a hit from Colorado Avalanche -- and former teammate -- Matt Hunwick.
The post-concussion symptoms have not gone away and with training camps set to open in a little over two weeks, the Bruins are going forward not expecting to have Savard back ... at all.
Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli told Fluto Shinzawa of the Boston Globe that Savard won't play this season and most likely never again:
"Based on what I see, what I hear, what I read, and what I'm told, it's very unlikely Marc will play again," Chiarelli said. "Now, knowing the uncertainty of this injury, there's always a chance [he could play]. But based on what I'm told, it's very unlikely he'll play. As an employer, I support him and hope he gets back to living a healthy life."
The 34-year old Savard is under contract until the end of the 2016-17 season with another $21 million owed to him. Chiarelli can place Savard on long-term injury reserve thereby allowing the Bruins to exceed the salary cap by the $4.007 million cap hit for him in the meantime. As we've found out over the past few years, concussion symptoms can disappear over time allowing players to come back and play, but given Savard's recent history, it might be a long wait until he makes a final decision on his future.