What It Means:

He took part in Wednesday's practice but served as a substitute on the second power-play unit and stayed on the ice for extra work after practice. Chara is still on injured reserve with an upper-body injury, but he appears to be improving. He will wait and see how he feels Thursday morning.

Chara, a 6-foot-9 monster, had a down season offensively a year ago, finishing with eight goals and 12 assists. He recorded 17 goals and 23 assists in 2013-'14.