On Wednesday afternoon, Luke Hughes swiftly skated on the ice at RWJBarnabas Health Hockey House, passing and receiving the puck from his teammates as the New Jersey Devils returned to action with a skills practice.
Head coach Sheldon Keefe watched from above as his forwards and defensemen were separated into their own groups. Hughes stayed on the ice for the entire on-ice session.
"He looks good," Keefe said, "He was able to skate with the group today, more just the skating and passing type of day, so we will just have to continue to monitor him and see where he is at. The hope is that we can ramp up as as we ramp up but encouraging to see him."
The 22-year-old will not be able to return to the lineup until Feb. 28, when the Devils play the St. Louis Blues, as he is on Long Term Injury Reserve.
The organization recalled defensemen Colton White and Dennis Cholowski, who joined Hughes, Brenden Dillon, Dougie Hamilton, Johnathan Kovacevic, and Brett Pesce.
Jonas Siegenthaler and Simon Nemec remain in Milan for the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026.
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