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Krug On Chara Injury: 'He's Irreplaceable, But We're Not Going To Dwell On It'

BOSTON (CBS) - Bruins defenseman Torey Krug joined 98.5 The Sports Hub's Gresh & Zolak program Friday afternoon for his weekly appearance, and of course the conversation started with Zdeno Chara.

The 37-year-old Chara sustained a knee injury midway through the first period in Thursday night's game against the Islanders. He did not return to the game.

After the game, TSN in Canada reported that Chara suffered ligament damage in his left knee, and that report was confirmed by general manager Peter Chiarelli this morning. Chara has a tear in his PCL and will miss 4-6 weeks.

"It's tough for our team. Z is an irreplaceable player on our team. With all the good that he does it's a tough spot to fill. We're not gonna dwell on that. We have a lot of guys that can step up in this situation, and a lot of guys that can take the opportunity and run with it," Krug said of Chara. "It's tough losing a guy like Z who does so much for your team, but we're gonna move forward."

You wouldn't necessarily categorize it as "snake bitten," but the Bruins have had to deal with quite a bit of adversity in the early going this season.

Johnny Boychuk was traded. David Krejci, Milan Lucic and Dennis Seidenberg are all working their way back from injury and haven't looked quite right yet. Now you throw in the absence of Zdeno Chara and you have to wonder if it's the straw that breaks the camel's back.

"It's one of those things where you have to approach it one game at a time. We understand he's going to be out for a period of time, but there's no reason to dwell on that. We're going to continue to focus on the group that we have and the guys that can go on the ice and do their jobs," said Krug. "It's not about doing anything out of the ordinary, it's about maintaining our identity as individual players and as a team."

Without Chara, Krug insists it'll be business as usual and the team must stick to the same script in order to be successful.

"Not to take anything away from Z, but one guy doesn't make our whole team. He's a big part of it. He's an emotional leader. He does a lot of things for us on the ice and he plays big minutes. But I think that's a big part of our system, that's why the coaching staff put it in place. If everybody does their job and nobody tries to step out of their comfort zone, or try and do too much, I think we'll be alright."

Listen below for the full interview!

Hear every game of the 2014-15 Boston Bruins season on 98.5 The Sports Hub — the flagship station of the Boston Bruins. Pregame coverage with Dave Goucher and Bob Beers begins 30 minutes prior to every game!

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