Marc Savard Set to Scout For the OHL

After being away from the game since a nasty concussion in 2011, Boston Bruins forward Marc Savard is ready to make his return as a scout. He’s not making his return to the NHL but instead will accept a role scouting for the Ottawa 67s junior team in the OHL, despite the ties he has to the Oshawa Generals.

For those who may not remember we’ll travel back in time to 2011 when Marc Savard was a magician on the ice and with the puck for the Boston Bruins. He was a leader who played the game the right way up until a blind side hit to the head ended his professional hockey career. The hit was delivered by the notorious Matt Cooke who received much scrutiny for the hit. Since the hit on January 22, 2011, Savard has been through hell and back while trying to recover from the concussion resulting in him all but hanging up his skates and stepping away from the game.

The hit also opened up a giant can of worms for the NHL as they started a new chapter in their player safety development. Today more than ever there is a big focus on concussions and how they affect the players.

Due to the fact he’s still under contract until 2017 with the Bruins he was placed on long-time injury reserve, keeping his cap hit at $1.5 million for the rest of this season. His cap hit does not count against the cap because of the CBA’s long-term injury exception and the Bruins continue to honour his contract as they can not buy-out an injured player.

While the injured Savard can’t take a job in the NHL or with the Bruins until his contract expires, excepting a role with the juniors is allowed. The NHL doesn’t see this move to scouting to have any affect on his ability to return to the game and are thus fine with the move.

The 37 year-old former Boston Bruins forward will be responsible for finding the next best hockey starts in the OHL ranks as he hopes to make an impact on the ice with the 67’s from the press box.