Bruins president Cam Neely met with the media via Zoom Thursday for the first time since goalie Tuukka Rask opted out of the playoffs and returned home to his family on Saturday.
Neely was asked about a few different aspects of the situation, including his reaction to Rask's decision, whether he has talked to Rask since he left, and whether the team would be open to Rask returning later in the postseason if he wants to do so.
Neely kept things pretty close to the vest, though, and never directly answered the latter question about the possibility of a return. He did, however, confirm that it was a family emergency, something that Rask himself has confirmed to both Dale Arnold and Greg Hill, but that general manager Don Sweeney did not mention when he spoke to the media on Saturday.
"I have not spoken to Tuukka the last few days," Neely said. "Obviously as you know, as Don mentioned, he came and spoke to us the morning of Game 3, where he said that he had to go home to deal with a family emergency. So we respected that. Now it's about the guys that are here and the team that we have here. That's what we have to focus on."
The Bruins have won all three games they've played since Rask's departure, closing out their first-round series against the Hurricanes in the process. When asked about how the team responded, both initially on the day of Game 3 and in the days since, Neely again reiterated that the players do a good job of just focusing on who's here and the task at hand.
"Well, we've never really made things easy around here," Neely said. "Like I said earlier, the guys are focused on who's here and what we have to do to play well and give ourselves a chance to win. It's really about the group here. Our players really focus on that. They talk a lot about it. They're really a close group to begin with. Both young and older players really get along well, have a lot of fun together. They're tight both on and off the ice, which I think helps make them a successful club."
Jaroslav Halak is now the team's clear No. 1 goalie. So far he has looked really good in two of the three games he's started (Games 3 and 5), while struggling in the other (Game 4). Overall, he stopped 68 of the 73 shots he faced in the series for a .932 save percentage.
Neely was asked what he thinks about Halak, including a possible comparison to Tim Thomas in terms of his playing style.
"Well, he's a competitor, both on and off the ice," Neely said. "He's well focused. Obviously a little surprising to get the call when he did, but as a backup goaltender you have to be prepared to come in at any time. I thought he stepped in and did a good job for us. He's very intense, but he's got a great sense of humor. I don't necessarily compare him to Tim, but he battles out there."
Presented by:
