Washington Capitals winger Max Pacioretty left the team’s last game before the extended break with a lower-body injury and did not return. Pacioretty’s well-chronicled recent injury history, which includes two Achilles tendon surgeries in less than two years, left major concerns about his long-term status.
To soothe some of those worries, the Capitals broke normal protocol and revealed that his ailment had nothing to do with his Achilles. Pacioretty’s agent, Allan Walsh, then went the extra mile to confirm his client’s health status, bypassing the team and announcing that the veteran forward was expected to be in the lineup on February 6 against the Montreal Canadiens.
After Monday’s practice, Walsh’s prediction seems to be right on track. Pacioretty skated with the rest of his teammates and did not don the customary light blue, non-contact jersey reserved for players expected to miss time due to injury.
Pacioretty skated 10:25 in the game that he left and had 14 total shifts. His final appearance on the ice came with 17:36 left in the third period and the injury did not appear to be contact-related.
The 35-year-old has played in 12 consecutive games since returning from a year-long rehabilitation process. He has a goal and seven points since making his Capitals debut.
Every single Capitals player on the team’s active roster, outside of Evgeny Kuznetsov who missed out due to personal reasons, joined Pacioretty in taking the ice on Monday. That included recent recall from the Hershey Bears, Mike Sgarbossa.
The only injury update other than Pacioretty’s status is that Sonny Milano is still skating in a non-contact sweater. Milano has not played since December 10. The 27-year-old winger has been on injured reserve since December 14 with an upper-body injury.
