Carlo revealed that, after blocking a shot, he got an infection in his ankle, where he's had a plate for eight years, which led to surgery.
Brandon Carlo is happy to be back with the Toronto Maple Leafs after an extended layoff due to injury.
The 29-year-old hasn't seen game action with Toronto since Nov. 13 against the Los Angeles Kings, missing a total of 20 games. Carlo blocked a shot in the matchup vs. the Kings and missed practice the next day, with what the Maple Leafs called "maintenance."
It became much more than that.
As Carlo was working his way back, he suffered a setback, which led to surgery in early December. It's been just over a month since, and it appears he could return to Toronto's lineup on Tuesday against the Florida Panthers.
The defenseman lined up alongside Morgan Rielly on the team's top defense pair at practice on Monday.
"Feeling good," Carlo said after the session on Monday. "Obviously, it's great to be around the guys again, just getting out in practice, having fun here and within the room. Those are the things you definitely miss, but overall on the ice, I've had some really good progression steps and feeling good."
Carlo revealed that, after blocking the shot against the Kings, he got an infection in his ankle.
"It was just a weird situation. It just didn't progress the way that we wanted it to ultimately," the defenseman said, crediting the Maple Leafs' medical staff in the same breath.
"I had an old plate in my ankle from like eight years ago, and as I was progressing, things just weren't feeling good around that plate. So I went in, cleaned it up, and I've just been progressing."
Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube didn't confirm Carlo would be in the lineup on Tuesday when he spoke following Monday's practice. However, all signs point to his return against the back-to-back Stanley Cup Champions, given his extra participation in practice, which included penalty kill work.
Carlo tried to stay as fit as possible throughout the entire recovery process. "Conditioning is never fun for anybody," he smiled, "but we all got to do it to get back in shape. Overall, I'm feeling pretty good in most regards and tried to stay as fit as possible throughout the whole injury off the ice as well."
The most difficult part in getting back, though, wasn't the conditioning, Carlo said; it was finding comfort in his skate again.
"I think that's kind of the steps that I've been checking off right now. Just getting back to not focusing on each stride, whether it be painful or not. Right now, it's feeling good. I haven't been thinking about it as much when I'm skating, so yeah, a lot to be happy about there."
If Carlo does make his return on Tuesday against the Panthers, this is how the entire defense core will shape out:
Morgan Rielly - Brandon Carlo
Oliver Ekman-Larsson - Troy Stecher
Simon Benoit - Philippe Myers
There were a total of eight defenseman on the ice for practice on Monday as Toronto looks to be without Jake McCabe for likely a week. Chris Tanev's lower-body injury (who could undergo surgery) appears to be more long-term.
"Well, it's tough, especially on the back end. It's been all year, right?" said Berube.
"We got through things last year up front (with injuries). It's a little easier, I believe, but on the back, yeah, it's tough. But guys step in and have been doing the job, so good thing we've got a lot of them around."
Carlo has enjoyed the Maple Leafs' play lately as they continue to push for a playoff spot, with wins in three of their last five games. If he returns to the lineup against the Panthers, he's hoping to help Toronto carry on with its strong game.
"There's a good vibe within this room. The guys have been competing hard. You're seeing the effort in the battle each and every night," Carlo said. "I like the way that we're trending, and hopefully, I can come in and just do my part to continue to help this team go in the right direction."