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Bruins Seidenberg Could Return Friday vs. Islanders

BOSTON (CBS) - Boston Bruins defenseman Dennis Seidenberg, sidelined for the last two games with a lower body injury, did not skate on Thursday.

Then again, none of the Bruins did.

But had the Bruins taken the ice, head coach Claude Julien said Seidenberg would have been out there with them.

"Nobody (skated), otherwise he would have been on the ice with everybody else," the Bruins coach told the media on Thursday.  "It's a day-to-day situation, and that hasn't changed."

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While he didn't take the ice, Seidenberg did talk with the media after the B's light workout in Wilmington. He is hoping to  return to the lineup Friday night when the Bruins host the New York Islanders at the TD Garden.

"I feel good," said Seidenberg. "I'll see how I feel tomorrow in the pregame skate. After that we'll make a decision."

Seidenberg Talks Injury: 

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The nagging injury has kept Seidenberg out of two of the Bruins three games this season, but with a condensed schedule thanks to the four-month lockout he and the Bruins aren't taking any chances.

"If it was the playoffs, I mean the games are all big, but if it was the playoffs I probably could have played," he said. "Looking at the schedule, with so many games coming up, you just want to be smart about it and not force it."

"A lot of it is us making the right decision for the long-haul rather than the short-term," added Julien.

" It's a short season with a lot of games in a short period of time," said Seidenberg. "You have to be smart about little problems you have going on, and that's what we're doing now; just being cautious."

Read: Julien Calls Hamilton's Effort Against Rangers 'Outstanding'

The Bruins have not missed Seidenberg too much thanks to the emergence of rookie blue liner Dougie Hamilton. So while he is hoping to return on Friday, given all that goes into a lockout-shortened season, Seidenberg could find himself with a few more precautionary days off.

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