Canadiens Vs. Bruins, Game 2: Zdeno Chara Out With Dehydration

After Thursday night’s Game 1, Zdeno Chara of the Boston Bruins checked himself into a hospital due to illness. Earlier today, Pro Hockey Talk reported that his status for the game was unknown, but that one source speculated that Chara would play Game 2 against the Montreal Canadiens. Now, just minutes before the puck drops, we’ve learned that Chara will not play, via the official twitter feed of the Bruins.

Veteran defenseman Shane Hnidy, who was a healthy scratch in Game 1, will be Chara’s replacement. There’s no word yet on how the Bruins will set up their defensive lines, but there will be a lot of pressure on the likes of Tomas Kaberle, Johnny Boychuck, Andrew Ference and the other Boston defenders to up their games in Chara’s absence.

On the other side of the ice, Habs forward Andrei Kostitsyn will be unavailable tonight after injuring himself in Game 1 while blocking a Zdeno Chara shot. He will be replaced by Yannick Weber, as the Habs dress seven defensemen and just 11 forwards.