Boston Bruins center David Krejci will miss 4-6 weeks with a partially torn MCL in his left knee, the Bruins announced Monday. Krejci was injured in the second period of a 5-1 loss to the St. Louis Blues last Friday while checking Alexander Steen. Boston is 9-9-3 without Krejci, who has missed time this season because of previous injuries. The Bruins hold a three-point lead on the Florida Panthers for the second Eastern Conference wild-card spot in the race to the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

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Boston - February 23, 2015 - Boston Bruins center David Krejci will miss 4-6 weeks with a partially torn MCL in his left knee, the Bruins announced Monday.

Krejci was injured in the second period of a 5-1 loss to the St. Louis Blues last Friday while checking Alexander Steen.

"It's a big loss when you lose a player of his caliber," linemate Milan Lucic told the Boston Globe on Saturday. "He's been an important player for us for the last number of years. He's definitely one of those guys that's hard to replace. At the end of the day, you still have a job to do. You still have to do it well. Just because one guy's out of the lineup, [it] can't change the whole focus of the team, the psyche of the team, or the psyche of one player as a linemate. That just means you have to find new chemistry with guys, work a little harder to find that, and hope that it comes."

Boston is 9-9-3 without Krejci, who has missed time this season because of previous injuries. The Bruins hold a three-point lead on the Florida Panthers for the second Eastern Conference wild-card spot in the race to the Stanley Cup Playoffs.