Andrei Vasilevskiy, the goaltender for the Tampa Bay Lightning, returned to practice after back surgery. He participated in practice and faced shots from teammates, expressing his excitement and feeling good. Nikita Kucherov also returned to practice after missing a game due to illness. Erik Cernak, another player, is listed as day-to-day and expected to skate soon. Vasilevskiy is expected to return to game action between Thanksgiving and December 1, approximately two weeks from the eight-week mark post-surgery. The assistant coach, Rob Zettler, expressed hopefulness about Cernak's status. Vasilevskiy acknowledged the injury was avoidable and plans to slow down in the gym. He will join the team on a two-game road trip to St. Louis and Chicago. Vasilevskiy's return is seen as a confidence builder for the team.
Johansson was first goaltender off the ice today at morning skate, so he will start tonight in St. Louis for #GoBolts.
Here’s Erik Cernak on the ice here in St. Louis before morning skate. Was talking to athletic trainers in between skating testing out his upper body injury. #gobolts https://t.co/oTMy4wywxj
Erik Cernak, who missed practice yesterday, is the first player I see on the #Bolts bench ahead of their morning skate here in St. Louis
Looks like Erik Cernak will skate on today’s #GoBolts morning skate here in St. Louis. Cernak was the first player out of the tunnel.
Andrei Vasilevskiy returns to practice with #GoBolts six weeks after back surgery, something he called "very silly" and "avoidable'' but #TBLightning can't afford to take a breath with his pending return, which could be as soon as the next two weeks https://t.co/U4e4xJ5wHf
Andrei Vasilevskiy returns to practice with #GoBolts six weeks after back surgery, something he called "very silly" and "avoidable'' but #TBLightning can't afford to take a breath with his pending return, which could be as soon as the next two weeks https://t.co/U4e4xJ4YRH
“It’s just a confidence builder, for him and for everybody. It’s great.” More on Andrei Vasilevskiy hitting the ice for #Bolts practice Monday morning. https://t.co/N13gWOssCn
Zettler on Vasilevskiy's return to practice: “It’s really exciting. It just means his progress is kind of on track and he’s doing really well. He’s healthy enough to get in there and face some real shots and some real traffic, so it’s great. He’s excited. He played a little game… https://t.co/Twy7d15PiC
Vasilevskiy said he's still about two weeks out from hitting that eight week post-surgery mark. Once he hits that, "we'll go from there." He will be joining the team on the road for the first time this season on the two-game trip to St. Louis and Chicago.
Vasilevskiy said even when he was skating for the first time after his surgery, he felt much better than he did before. He shared that the injury was a result of a hard workout in the gym, so he plans on slowing down in terms of pushing himself so hard in the weight room.
Rob Zettler, one of the #Bolts assistant coaches, on the status of Erik Cernak: “Obviously day to day, didn't practice today as you guys know. I talked to him before and he said he's feeling good so we're hopeful”
Vasilevskiy on the timeline for his return to game action: “We'll see. We'll see. It's still about two weeks away from eight weeks from that surgery and, so, once we hit that eight week mark we'll go from there”
Vasilevskiy on practicing with his teammates for the first time since his surgery: “It feels amazing. Obviously, it's been a long time. Obviously, it's unfortunate but it is what it is so I took the time to recover well to prepare myself for the first practice and I feel good, I… https://t.co/iiuPBH7PO1
#Bolts assistant coach Rob Zettler on the status of Erik Cernak: “Obviously day-to-day. Didn’t practice today, as you guys know, but I talked to him before. He said he’s feeling good, so we’re hopeful.”
Update on Erik Cernak: officially listed as day to day, expected to be on the ice and skating tomorrow at morning skate in St. Louis #GoBolts #TBLightning
Vasilevskiy: “It was pretty hard just to see all the guys playing and enjoying the game. I was just in the gym, doing my rehab and skating by myself for a few weeks. It wasn’t fun, but I was able to take that time and shape the situation more in a positive way. I was able to… https://t.co/3DZJhFeus5
We spoke to Andrei Vasilevskiy after practice about how he is feeling following back surgery at the end of September. “Surprisingly, even when I was skating for the first time after that surgery, I felt much better than before that. It’s just such a silly injury and way… https://t.co/HoJkAS4qLv
Andrei Vasilevskiy on being back at a practice: “It feels amazing. It's been a long time. Obviously it's unfortunate but it is what it is. So I took the time to recover well to prepare myself for the first practice and it feels good.” More at https://t.co/PrhiEsId36 later
Andrei Vasilevskiy on returning to the ice: “It feels amazing. Obviously, it’s been a long time. Obviously, it’s unfortunate, but it is what it is. I took that time to recover well and to prepare myself for the first practice. I feel good.”
Andrei Vasilevskiy now in net facing some shots during drills for the second half of practice #GoBolts #TBLightning https://t.co/CzMBWu1W2b
More video of Vasilevskiy at #Bolts practice. Looks comfortable. https://t.co/OTv3Hw7FfF
in a pleasantly surprising twist, Andrei Vasilevskiy is participating in practice with his teammates today at Amalie Arena … at last check, we were told he is expected to return to game action between Thanksgiving and December 1 #GoBolts https://t.co/ZHWOp9GxzJ
#GoBolts back at practice today before leaving for St. Louis to start a 2-game road trip. This is Nikita Kucherov back at practice, but no Erik Cernak #TBLightning https://t.co/HnrpxUnOpN
Vasilevskiy in the net, participating in practice and taking shots from his #Bolts teammates. https://t.co/lSpTmjLcCI
👀 Looks like Andrei Vasilevskiy is joining the #Bolts for practice today. Nikita Kucherov is also back on the ice for practice today after missing Saturday’s game with an illness. https://t.co/68aiKqYzxw
in a pleasantly surprising twist, Andrei Vasilevskiy is participating in practice with his teammates today at Amalie Arena … at last check, we were told he is expected to return to game action between Thanksgiving and December 1 #GoBolts https://t.co/bvOTmI68Xj