Backes faces surgery
Will be on shelf eight weeks
Two weeks ago, Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy hinted that forward David Backes, who missed the first five games of the season because of diverticulitis, might require future surgery. That time arrived quickly.
Backes will undergo surgery today to remove a portion of his colon. He will be sidelined approximately eight weeks, another major hit to a lineup already depleted by injuries.
“We lose another good soldier,” Cassidy said yesterday. “The personal health of an individual (is what matters), right? He just needs to take care of it. But it’s just really bad timing for the Boston Bruins.
“He’s just got to get it done and get heathy. Hopefully it goes well and he recovers (quickly).”
So the Bruins, who take on the impressive Vegas Golden Knights tonight at the Garden, are missing three centers — Backes, David Krejci and Ryan Spooner — along with defenseman Adam McQuaid and winger Noel Acciari.
“Nothing has kind of played out the way we were hoping because of some of the injuries,” Cassidy said. “It’s challenging every day. You want to develop some chemistry in the lines. Repetition as a team makes things easier as you go along. That’s been difficult. But that’s the hand you’re dealt, (and) you’ve got to play it. Our job as a staff is to try and be as seamless as possible, putting lines together and incorporating these young guys.
“We’re going to have pockets when it doesn’t look pretty, and we’re going to have (times) once it does come together when we can be effective because we’ve got a core group of guys who can really carry this team. We’ve just got to get the other guys pulled into it quick.”
The 33-year-old Backes had one assist in five games after being cleared to play Oct.19. He has 17 goals and 22 assists in 79 career games with the Bruins and will cost the team $6 million against the salary cap each season through 2020-21.
The B’s said the episode that kept Backes sidelined at the start of the season was his second in two months and was complicated by an abscess that required drainage. The doctors were waiting for the right time to operate.
“Repeated episodes, like what David experienced, have a very high likelihood of recurrence in the near term, which is why he was advised to have surgery to remove the area of colon causing the problem,” Bruins team internist David Finn said in a statement. “It was determined that attempting to delay the surgery until after the season was an unacceptable risk to his health.”
The Bruins said they consulted with outside specialists before making the decision on surgery and that Backes was at no risk while playing his five games.
Backes’ teammates had some advance notice the surgery might become necessary.
“We knew this was a possibility,” Patrice Bergeron said. “He told me (Tuesday) it was going to happen. It’s really unfortunate. It’s tough to see him be out of the lineup for a period of time. We’re thinking about him, first, and his health. You want to make sure he’s going to be fine.”
Bergeron said Backes’ absence will hurt in more ways than one.
“He’s a big voice in the locker room,” Bergeron said. “He’s been around for a while. It’s a big void to fill on and off the ice. It’s all about that mentality of next man up, make sure we all pick up the slack. Everyone who gets the tap on the shoulder gets more responsibility, more ice time out of this.
“Go out there and do the job. I can’t tell you (it is) one guy. It’s everyone who may be asked to do a little bit more for the team, and you have to answer.”