Zdeno Chara skated 25 minutes and 6 seconds in the Boston Bruins' Game 1 loss to the Montreal Canadiens, but like most of his teammates didn't perform to the best of his abilities.
In fact, his roughing penalty on Tomas Plekanec with under three minutes in the game, and his team down two goals, was uncharacteristic for the B's captain.
One possibly reason: The Boston Herald broke the news today that Chara was hospitalized on Friday night with dehydration, and is being evaluated by the Bruins' physicians ahead of tonight's Game 2.
Chara answered questions after the game and practiced yesterday. But according to one source, he was feeling poorly in the afternoon and went into the hospital to receive fluids.
That same source expected him to play tonight. "If he got hit by a bus he'd be playing," said the source.
The Bruins confirmed the news this morning. Hard to imagine Chara won't play, but easy to wonder if Chara is really going to be Chara out there in a critical Game 2 on home ice.
Meanwhile, one mystery remains: Do they have gowns for 9-foot-tall hockey players at the hospital, or did they have to stitch a couple together?