The star defenseman takes his first steps back on the ice, signaling a crucial boost is imminent for the Hurricanes' blueline.
For the first time since sustaining a lower-body injury in October, Jaccob Slavin was once again back on the ice with the Carolina Hurricanes.
At Tuesday's practice, Slavin donned a yellow, non-contact jersey and took part in a full practice which is a great sign for the team.
"I don't think Slavo is too close yet, but it's great to see him," said Hurricanes coach Rod Brind'Amour. "That's his first practice with us [since the injury]. It would be nice to get him in a real jersey, but I think it's a step in the right direction."
"It was nice to see Slavo out there," said captain Jordan Staal. "It's been a little up and down with injuries this year. It's been frustrating. It's great to see him and I'm excited to see him compete again."
Slavin, 31, has played in just two games this season after sustaining a lower-body injury at the tail end of a game against the Philadelphia Flyers and he's left a big hole on the Canes' blueline.
The star defenseman has been the Hurricanes number one defender for years now and he's arguably the best shutdown defender in the entire NHL.
"He's one of the best defensemen in the league so it's always nice to see him out on the ice with the guys," Staal said. "It's a big moment for him, I'm sure, and for the group, we're excited to see him."
Slavin getting back on the ice is just one step in what will still probably be at least a few more days of him ramping back up.
He's missed a significant amount of time and so the team will want to make sure he's fully ready to go so as to not risk a reinjury.
"That's the key for him, number one, to get in the mix again," Brind'Amour said. "Been out for a couple months. For our group too, it's nice to see that we have a guy coming hopefully soon. Everything we're doing now is to ramp him up and obviously we miss him."
The Hurricanes also saw the return of Pyotr Kochetkov on Tuesday as well as Jesperi Kotkaniemi shedding his non-contact jersey.
Kotkaniemi was injured blocking a shot off of his ankle on Nov. 14 and has since missed the team's last eight games.
"We're getting closer that's for sure," Brind'Amour said on the Finnish center.
Kochetkov has missed the team's last six games dealing with a reaggravation of an injury he suffered earlier in the year.
"It's kind of up to him and how he feels now," Brind'Amour said. "We'll have a better update tomorrow, but hopefully he'll be back in the mix here soon."
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