WILMINGTON — Bruins center Marc Savard doesn’t know when he will make his long-awaited season debut after battling post-concussion symptoms, but said on Monday that it won’t be long before he is back. Following his third practice of the full-contact variety, Savard felt confident that he could soon be in the Bruins’ lineup.

“[It was] another good day, and a little bit of work after, and continuing to progress,” Savard, who worked on battle drills with teammate Adam McQuaid, said. “Hopefully I’m going to get in soon, just around the corner.”

Savard seemed quite sure that he would not be in the lineup when the Bruins take on the Flyers on Wednesday. Asked about his prospects of playing in Philadelphia, Savard replied, “I don’t think so. No, I’m not going to be playing Wednesday. I don’t think so.”

The center’s chances of playing on Thursday at home vs. the Lightning are also up in the air.

“I don’t know,” Savard said. “We’ll have to wait and see.”

Mike Milbury

NESN and NBC Sports hockey analyst Mike Milbury made his weekly appearance on the Dale & Holley show Wednesday. The Bruins are coming off a loss to the Lightning on Monday in which they got off to a slow start and fell 3-1. “It’s a tough league, and if you’re not ready to play, you’re going to get beat,” he said. “And the Bruins clearly weren’t ready to play against Tampa. They looked as bad as they’ve looked all year.”

Added Milbury: “Maybe they’re looking ahead. It’s Florida, that’s one thing. Maybe they went golfing, maybe it was a nice day, maybe too many good-looking chicks on the street in Tampa. I don’t know. But it’s a constant challenge. It’s the art form of coaching, for me, to make sure that your team is read to go. And I think Claude Julien does by and large a real good job of that. But this time, for whatever combinations of reasons, it slipped.”

Milbury was asked if the Bruins are capable of winning the Stanley Cup this season. “It’s a wide-open league right now,” he said. “I think Chicago’s dismantling was an invitation to everybody that was close to pick it up a little, because it’s there. … I think it’s a pretty wide-open horse race. I think they do have the pieces.

“I’d like to see them add a defenseman,” Milbury continued. “I’d like to see them add a defenseman who can generate offense from the point, because they don’t have that right now, or the guys that they have aren’t giving that right now. And I’d also like to see them with a full roster for a little while before I make that assessment. But I think everybody would agree that when [Marco] Sturm comes back and [Marc] Savard comes back, they’re a better team for it. It’s going to cause some shuffling of lines and some disruption and that may take a little while to settle down. But when it’s all said and done, they’re two pretty good players. And any time you can put good players in the lineup, you’re going to get better. The goaltending has been outstanding.

“Yeah, I have to agree with Dale that they have the stuff to get there. I’m not calling them the odds-on favorite, but if it all comes together at the right time, they have a a chance. No question.”

Milbury reminisced about one-time Bruins coach Pat Burns, who died last week at the age of 58 after a lengthy battle with cancer, and said Burns should have been elected to the Hall of Fame this year.

“It was a shame that there wasn’t common sense going around in plenty at the meeting of the Hall of Fame selection committee,” he said. “Everybody knew Pat was not well and time was running short. … Wouldn’t somebody just stand up and say, ‘Come on, guys. He’s going in the Hall of Fame. He’s dying. Let’s get him in before he goes. Let’s have him has his day in the sun so he can really relish it.’ They missed the boat on that. And I don’t get it. I just don’t get why somebody who is that qualified to be in the Hall of Fame — and I think he is, and almost everybody I talk to feels the same way — and I just don’t get why they wouldn’t have honored him under these circumstances.”

Bruins general manager Peter Chiarelli issued the following statement regarding center Marc Savard on Tuesday:

“Today Marc passed the tests administered by Dr. Micky Collins from the Sports Medicine department at UPMC, and is now cleared for contact. Marc will rejoin the team tomorrow for morning skate in Florida. There is no time-table at this time for Marc to start playing games.”

Savard had travelled to Pittsburgh to undergo the testing. He had been cleared for practice and got on the ice with the rest of his teammates on Saturday, though he could not recieve physical contact at the time.

Savard has not played a game this season due to post-concussion syndrome. He suffered a concussion last March against the Penguins, missing the rest of the season before returning in the second round of the playoffs against the Flyers. He suffered a setback while training in the offseason.

Bruins center Marc Savard told reporters Monday that he will see Dr. Mark Lovell, whom he called “the guru of concussions” and undergo the final test required to be cleared for full-contact on Tuesday in Pittsburgh. Savard joined his teammates in practice for the first time during Saturday’s morning skate, but is still unable to give and receive contact.

“I guess it’s quite a test,” Savard said. “It’s like six hours long. He’s going to put me through some workouts and some strenuous stuff. When I’m at my weakest, he can see how my brain is and stuff like that. I’m interested. I’m really excited about going.”

Savard said he is “still going to be a bit away” from playing even if he passes the test. He has not played this season as he recovers from post-concussion syndrome.

Bruins center Marc Savard spoke about a number of things Saturday, including the rough time he had while dealing with post-concussion syndrome symptoms, one of which was depression.

“I need to understand that is just the way I was feeling, because you think that maybe it’s because I didn’t want to play, but this is the game I grew up playing, I loved and love. Again, I think that love went away for a bit because I wasn’t sure about anything,” Savard said. “Obviously now I’ve had time to heal and I can’t wait to get back out there with the guys and play some games.”

Here’s some video of Savard talking about how glad he was to return to practice with his teammates. He was cleared on Friday to practice in non-contact situations and will undergo further tests next week.

Here is the complete transcript of Savard’s briefing with the media on Saturday, thanks to the fantastic folks at the Bruins:

On how good it felt to be out with the rest of the boys skating:

It felt unbelievable. You know it’s been a long time. You know it’s pretty special to be… To make it to this step, and hopefully gradually get better and go from there;

On how he’s been feeling over the last couple of weeks:

Fantastic. I would say for about two or three weeks now that I really haven’t felt any ill effects and things are heading in the right direction, that’s for sure.

On if there was a turning point where he just started feeling better:

Yeah, I mean I think it’s been a combination of stuff and working hard and working with the doctors carefully. The whole staff has been excellent you know Dr. Asnis and Dr. McInnis , Dr. Durant, Donny [Don DelNegro], Whitey [John Whitesides] obviously for keeping me in shape and you know the whole training staff back to Keto [Keith Robinson], Matty [Matt Falconer], I’d like to mention everybody. I think a big thing too you know the fans, they’ve been great. I’ve gotten a lot of really nice letters. It really helped me through this time and I appreciate that stuff.

On if he has thought about where he fits in on a team that is playing so well:

I think there’s a couple areas I can still help a bit, but no it’s great seeing the guys playing well. I think that’s been the easiest thing for me, is to have time to get better and then work on my stuff that I need to work on and clearing my head so I am ready to go. The way they’ve been playing is fantastic and hopefully I can just fit in quietly and go about what I do best and help the team win in some area.

On if he has talked to any of the players who have gone through the same thing:

I mean every incident is different and you know obviously Patrice [Bergeron] has helped me a bit and stuff. A couple players who don’t play anymore have been helping me too and obviously I think the biggest thing has been the doctors. Just listening to what the doctors have to say and you know it’s been a whole group effort here. Everyone in my family has been incredible and everybody behind me, it has really help the process. Obviously Peter [Chiarelli]’s been one of the best supports for me in helping me out and obviously [Matt Chmura] too. It’s just been a long road, but everybody’s been patient and that’s made me feel a lot better. Read the rest of this entry »

After skating with the rest of his teammates for the first time this season, Bruins center Marc Savard addressed his state of mind, his recovery from post-concussion syndrome, and the unflattering light in which his name has grabbed headlines of late. NHL disciplinarian Colin Campbell, who coached Savard while the two were with the Rangers in 1997-98, had e-mails leaked in which he called Savard a “little fake artist” and the “biggest faker going.”

On Saturday, Savard reminisced on their days in New York and the positive relationship the two had, and noted that it would be unfair to suggest the e-mails conveyed a bias that went into the decision to not suspend Matt Cooke, who gave Savard his concussion last March.

Marc Savard isn't holding a grudge after Colin Campbell called him a "faker."

“I have nothing against [Colin Campbell]. I think that stuff was private stuff, and I think that stuff that he was saying got interpreted in a bad way,” Savard, who noted the e-mails “didn’t faze” him. “It had nothing to do with the Cooke incident.

“Me and Colie got along fine,” he added. “He actually joked with me a lot. He made me feel comfortable, and I owe a lot to him. He was my first coach that I broke in with, and he gave me an opportunity. … He was great for me, and I’ve got no hard feelings against him. I think that the media should maybe take it a little bit easier on him.”

As for the idea that he is a “faker,” Savard said that he felt the comments were probably less serious than one would think, given that Campbell himself encouraged that style of play.

“I played for Colie, and I think one of the ways when I first came in the league to stay in the lineup was to draw penalties, and I think he encouraged that at the time if you asked him,” Savard said. “I think that’s what he was referring to, but it had nothing to do with the Cooke situation. ”

The situation was made dicier by the fact that one of the e-mails was about a high-sticking call that Savard drew on Campbell’s son Gregory, now playing for the Bruins, back in 2007.

“I talked to [Gregory Campbell, a.k.a 'Soupy'] here, and Soupy’s a great kid. We had no hard feelings against each other. I can’t wait to get back and play with him.”

Savard has been cleared to practice with the team, but still cannot take physical contact. He is expected to undergo further testing next week.

WILMINGTON — The Bruins did not skate on Friday — well, Adam McQuaid, David Krejci, Marc Savard, Johnny Boycuk, and Tim Thomas did — so much of the focus was on Savard. Bruins general manager Peter Chiarelli said at Ristuccia Arena that Savard is set to join his teammates in practice, though he still can’t take or receive contact. Afterwards, he touched on the other news surrounding Savard in talking with Matt Kalman of TheBruinsBlog.

Emails from Colin Campbell that were leaked last week suggested that the league’s disciplinarian holds a bias against Savard, whom he called the “biggest faker going.” Chiarelli told Kalman that he’s had contact with Campbell since the development.

“I’ve spoken to him,” Chiarelli said. “My conversations with him are private, but I’ve spoken to him.”

Campbell, meanwhile denied holding any bias against Savard, saying that his feelings about the player had no impact on his decision regarding the Matt Cooke hit last March that gave Savard the concussion from which he is still recovering.

“For someone to compare me saying that Marc Savard is an embellisher — a diver — on penalties, and then say that I might think he was faking in the Cooke hit is totally absurd,” Campbell said on the NHL Network on Thursday.