After Friday’s 2-1 overtime win over the Winnipeg Jets, head coach Claude Julien confirmed that Zdeno Chara, who suffered a PCL tear in his left knee against the New York Islanders back on October 24th, will not join the Boston Bruins on their four-game west coast trip that begins Monday night in Anaheim.

Chara, who has been skating on his own over the last few days, will continue to skate in Boston. By the time the Bruins come home from the west coast, the Bruins captain could very well rejoin his teammates as a full participant in practice.

After that, it would only be a matter of time for Chara to don the Spoked B again. During the second intermission of Hockey Night in Canada, Rogers Sportsnet’s Damian Cox reported that the Bruins are targeting a December 11th return for the 6-foot-9 defenseman.

In 15 games without Chara, the Bruins have kept their head above water going 10-4-1 in that span. It hasn’t been pretty by any means, but they’re getting the job done.

On Boston.com: Low scoring games becoming the norm for B’s

The Bruins conclude their four-game west coast trip on Saturday night against the Arizona Coyotes. After that, they’ll have four days to prepare for the high-flying Chicago Blackhawks in their first of two meetings on December 11th. Having Zdeno Chara return against the likes of Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews and company would be ideal for many supporters of the Black and Gold.

Relive what the Bruins had to say about losing their captain after their 3-2 loss to the New York Islanders back in October.