The Capitals may be creeping closer to adding one of their injured players back to the lineup.
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Mike Green, who had sports hernia surgery Jan. 17, skated for more than an hour at the team’s morning skate in Arlington on Monday. That’s a big step forward for a player who was expected to miss four to six weeks after his procedure.
It’s still early in the process, however. Green has to make it through several full contact practices unscathed before he can be confident enough to return to NHL action. And even when he does there will be residual soreness. But now a March 1 return seems like a realistic possibility — if not even a few days sooner.
That possibility gives general manager George McPhee the option to deal from his surplus of defenseman by the Feb. 27 trade deadline. The team would have eight NHL-caliber players with Green healthy. Or he could sit on that depth and put his blueliners in more suitable roles because when he’s in form, Green can chew up minutes with the best of them.
– Brian McNally
