Carolina Hurricanes fans could be in for a special treat in the coming days as star forward Seth Jarvis seems to be very close to returning to the lineup.

Jarvis, 24, underwent shoulder surgery over the summer and has been sidelined since the start of the year as he continues to recover.

However, the team's leading goal scorer from the past two season has taken a big step in his progress toward returning, shedding the non-contact jersey he's been wearing since Day 1 of training camp for the first time at Thursday's morning skate.

"This is probably the biggest step I've had so far," Jarvis said. "Getting out of that and being able to take contact, now it's just a matter of getting comfortable and making sure it's ready to go."

Jarvis, who had dealt with the torn labrum/rotator cuff since 2023, was initially given a four to six month timeline following surgery, putting his possible return anywhere from October to even potentially the start of the new year, so to have him out there already at this stage is massive.

"The shoulder's good," Jarvis said. "It's doing well. There's not much that really bothers it anymore, which is nice. Just easing into contact now is the next biggest step."

In his absence, Carolina has managed a 2-1-1 record, with his normal linemates, Sebastian Aho and Andrei Svechnikov, putting up five goals and 11 points without him, prompting Jarvis to joke that he might have been dragging them down.

"I miss it a ton though," Jarvis said. "I miss going on the road with the guys. I'm not around them as much, which sucks, and it's been tough to watch, but they've been doing good. I'm just happy we're having success."

Jarvis was skating as an extra on Thursday, so while he won't be playing tonight against the Vancouver Canucks, his return could be just around the corner.

"These are all good signs," said Carolina coach Rod Brind'Amour. "There's a timeline and so we're just following that. He's feeling good, so just gonna keep moving him along."

And how much of an impact does Jarvis think having two healthy shoulders again will have on his game?

"I'm sure it couldn't hurt," Jarvis said. "I just hope I'm still good."

If his production with only one fully intact shoulder is anything to go off of, three straight 30+ goal seasons, I'm sure he'll be just fine.

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