“I’m still day-by-day,” Bolland said. “It’s getting better. I just want to make sure it’s strong. I’m hopefully playing for that Round 2. I’ll keep on working at it and making sure it gets better.”

Ray Emery is also close to returning.

“From my perspective … it’s been a terrible season for us,” Gillis said. “We’re going to have to reinvent ourselves and do things differently in order to be successful. The macro look at this team is that changes have to be made.”

With the cap going down and some big contracts on the books, they’ll need to clear out some salary. Roberto Luongo will likely be traded and there is the amnesty buyout option for Keith Ballard ($4.2 million) and David Booth ($4.25 million).

“We don’t have the luxury of having picked first overall in the last 10 years,” Gillis said. “We have to use the players we have, the core group that we have, and we have to build around them. There will come a point where that core group is going to be dismantled or will no longer play, but it’s not today.

“When I took this job, we decided on a style of play that resulted in great success. And clearly, the landscape has changed and we have to address those changes. We don’t have a choice. It’s not something I necessarily agree with. But that’s what we face, and that’s what you have to do.

“We have to make the changes and adjustments necessary to compete for a Stanley Cup. It’s my intention to do it and recognize what’s going on and make sure we have a team that’s better equipped.”

“Changes have to be made, but I’m not going to commit today to what those changes will be,” Gillis said. “It’s difficult when things end so quickly and they end so negatively for all of us. It’s pretty emotional to go through.”