Bruins captain Brad Marchand talks about the team’s skid and how they’re working to stop it

What followed was the liveliest and most physical practice since training camp, as the Bruins tried to shake off the hump.

“I thought we had a really good practice today,” Marchand said. “Our biggest thing right now is our details and we really focused on that today, trying to be smart, the way we play the puck and the way we work.

“So we did a really good job today. Really good training tempo. The guys were focused and sharp. So it was a good day, but it’s one day at a time and we’ve got to build on that and get better every day and we still need that consistency.”

While it’s common for veteran players to be given maintenance days when they have a day off between games, Marchand said it’s important for everyone to be present and accountable on Friday.

“When things don’t go your way, the only way to get out of it is to work, and you have to do that together as a group,” he said. “When you miss your guys, sometimes it’s a little harder to create the chemistry you need and get everyone to experience it together.

“When you go through adversity, you want to get through it as a group and come out of it as a group. So it’s great to be there and work on it as a team and that’s how you bond when you’re going through tough times, that’s when the character comes out of your group and we’re seeing that right now.

“The kids have energy today. I like their attitude, but it’s still about doing it every day, not just one day. So it’s something to build on.”

The session was quite vocal, and Marchand said that was a point worth making.

“This is something we’ve been talking about for a while,” he said. “The more you can communicate about disruptions in preflights, the easier you will make this for each other. And part of having a lot of new guys two years in a row is building that chemistry over and over again. The more you talk, the easier it gets.

“So that’s definitely something we’ve talked about, not just today but in the days before.”

Parts of the drills were conducted in a scrimmage-like manner, with players going full speed with plenty of physical strength. While the risk of injury is always present, Marchand said it’s necessary

“You hurt your teammates when they’re not ready for it,” Marchand said. “So it’s part of your job to be prepared when you go out to practice so that we don’t stall. We’re going to compete, we’re going to be physical and we’re going to play hard, you’ve got to be ready to hit and be hit.

“I think there’s a responsibility to be as careful as the player who’s getting hit. You’re not trying to figure out guys’ heads and knees and things like that, but part of playing detailed and playing our game is being physical and that starts with training.”

“If you’re not ready to hit, you’re not ready to practice.”

Tufte waived

Bruins place winger Riley Tufte regarding renunciation. Teams have 24 hours to sign Tufte, who has played just twice this season. If the request is not made, he will report to Providence. Tufte was signed on July 1 to a one-way deal with a salary cap hit of $775,000. This move could speed up the transfer of the experienced winger Tyler JohnsonThe Bruins will host the Maple Leafs on Saturday night and the coach will be… who remains with the team through a PTO agreement Jim Montgomery He said that although getting back on track is an internal rather than external process, the “juices should flow easily.” “It never hurts to have one of your biggest rivals in town, that’s for sure,” he said. “This may be a good diversion, but our main focus should be on our own progress and getting better.”

Jim McBride can be reached at [email protected]. follow him @globejimmcbride.