The Washington Capitals saw one of their recently sidelined players take the ice on Saturday for the first time since hitting the injured list. Sonny Milano, who was placed on injured reserve a little over a week ago, practiced with his teammates before their game against the Tampa Bay Lightning in a light blue, non-contact jersey.
Head coach Spencer Carbery was asked by RMNB’s Katie Adler to give an update on the 27-year-old winger after the skate. Milano has not played in a game since December 10 in Chicago against the Blackhawks.
“He’s starting to get there,” Carbery said. “I would say it’s obviously post-break. I don’t think it will be right away after the break, but that’s a positive sign for him. Next step would be getting [out of] a non-contact and we’ll see where that goes. It’s tough because we don’t have any practices over the break. So, I highly doubt he comes right back out of the break into New York.
“If everything goes as planned and he continues to improve, I think whether or not it’s in that group of games there right after the break, soon after I would say.”
Milano was placed on IR with an upper-body injury. In his last game against Chicago, he skated 10:15 of ice time in the win and finished the night without any apparent injury. He then participated in the Capitals’ next practice but was not present the following day.
The former first-round draft pick has eight points (4g, 4a) in 23 games this season. He was recently healthy scratched for a game by Carbery due to a cold streak offensively.
“He’s just been struggling offensively and a little bit of confidence,” Carbery said on December 7. “I’ve met with him a couple times, had a tough road trip.
“He’s working, I’ll tell you that. There’s no one on our group that wants it more. He’s trying. So him just coming out, take a step back, reset, watch some film, and then just try to build that confidence back with the puck and with his offense.”
The Capitals are currently carrying one extra forward and 22 total players on their roster. That means Milano could have an available roster spot to slide into when the team deems him healthy enough to return.
That roster spot may be occupied by defenseman Ethan Bear in the coming days though after he officially signs with the club. In that case, the Capitals will need to send a player down to AHL Hershey before activating Milano.
Headline photo: Katie Adler/RMNB
