Are practices too high-paced for the Bruins?

In light of Tuukka Rask being injured when he was on the receiving end of a collision with rookie Anders Bjork during Tuesday's practice, I thought it good timing to bring back an item that was published in our NHL Notes a few weeks ago. 

Unless Bruins fans have been living under a Zamboni, they know Bruce Cassidy wants the team to play a faster, up-tempo, offensive-minded style of play. His practices are similar and they’re fun to watch. Players are crashing, banging and flying around the ice with a controlled sense of reckless abandon. However, a few players have been on the receiving end or more bumps and bruises as a result.



There are been some serious collisions during practice but the players aren’t concerned. As David Backes explained, there’s a difference between speed and “not-smart speed.”

“Guys buzzing around at a million miles-per-hour with really nowhere to go is dangerous,” he said. “The way some of these guys can skate, especially the young kids, if they can channel that, save it and then have that burst at the right time with some intelligence to it, that’s a great tool to have.

“Some of these kids, the way that they fly is spectacular. It just needs to be done intelligently and it’s a really good asset. If it’s not done intelligently, you’re running around like a chicken with its head cut off. That can be learned. It can be taught, but it’s a process.”

The NHL game is so well orchestrated that players know all the time where they should be positioned and where the puck is and it starts in practice.

“There’s more to fast than I’m going to beat you from the goal line to the red line,” Backes said.

https://twitter.com/NHLBruins/status/920714749846999041