Bruins staying healthy, productive in European stints

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Since its nothing but silence until the NHL and NHLPA resume negotiations on Wednesday morning at the NHL offices in New York City, it seems like a good time for an update on the Bruins players in Europe.

Tyler Seguin continues to light things up for HC Biel, and has 16 goals and 28 points in 17 games played for the Swiss-A League, and has mashed nicely with the high speed, minimal contact European game. Hes also managed to work his way back to an even plusminus rating after a rough start in Switzerland. Patrice Bergeron has nine goals and 17 points in 10 games for HC Lugano, and gives the Bruins a pair of centers keeping their games sharp for a quick start to the NHL regular season. Chris Kelly has also signed with HC Red Ice in Switzerland, but Kelly doesnt look like hes appeared in a game for the Swiss team after a quick browse of their website.

Zdeno Chara has three goals and eight points along with a minus-1 rating in 13 games HC Lev Prague in the KHL, and has enjoyed plenty of practice chasing around speedy, undersized forwards in the skill league. Goaltender Anton Khudobin is 3-9-2 with a 3.08 goals against average and a .908 save percentage for Moscow Oblast Atlant while staying warm for his run as the Bruins backup goaltender.

Dennis Seidenberg has five assists and is sitting at a plus-8 in 12 games for the Mannheim Eagles in the German Elite League. Rich Peverley has three goals and 12 points in 15 games for JyP HT Jyvaskyla in the Finnish Elite League, and the sometimes feisty forward has also racked up 16 penalty minutes during his European adventure.

Tuukka Rask is 6-2 with a 1.58 goals against average and a .936 save percentage for Plzen HC in the Czech Extra League, and that has to be encouraging for a Bruins front office ready to hand him the goaltending duties.

Andrew Ference has a goal and four points along with a plus-2 in 10 games for Ceske Budejovice HC while playing with Vinny Prospal and Ales Kotalik. Bruins center Gregory Campbell could be joining Budejovice shortly as well as the two sides are reportedly working out the details of a contract for the fourth line mainstay. David Krejci is off to a great start with Pardubice HC and has nine goals and 16 points along with a plus-1 in 15 games during his first prolonged time skating in his home country since he was a teen-ager.

Johnny Boychuk was the 11th Bs skater to sign a European contract and left for Austria at the end of last week, but hasnt yet appeared in a game for Red Bull Salzburg while becoming Bostons first player to skate in the Austrian First Division. The most important piece of information concerning all of these players: other than a tweaked groin during one of Rasks first games and some minor bumps and bruises for Bergeron and Ference, the Black and Gold have remained remarkably healthy while playing games a long, long way from home.

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