Jordan Staal is hoping to rejoin the Carolina Hurricanes during their upcoming trip to Finland after returning to the ice with his teammates on Saturday. The captain has been sidelined for nearly a month with a torn calf muscle, but his recovery has reached another important stage. Carolina will travel to Helsinki next week for two games against the Seattle Kraken, and Staal wants to be part of the lineup if his progress continues. However, the forward knows he still has work to do before receiving the green light to play.
Staal Hopes to Return Against Seattle Kraken
Saturday’s morning skate marked Staal’s first time back on the ice with his teammates since suffering the injury during warmups before Carolina’s 4-1 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers on October 11. The Hurricanes initially expected him to miss one to two months.
Staal intends to travel with the team and take part in practices on Monday and Tuesday before evaluating his chances of playing in Finland.
“I haven’t really practiced the team,” Staal said Saturday. “I’d like to get a couple in and see how I feel. Flying across the ocean and not playing in games wouldn’t be the smartest thing, so I’d like to try to play, but we’ll see how it goes.”
Carolina also has additional practice opportunities in Helsinki before facing Seattle on November 12 and 14. Staal would like to use that time to prepare for a possible appearance in the second game.
“I would like to try,” he said. “I can’t say I promise that. I mean, if I’m going to fly all the way over there, I’d like to play in a game, if everything goes smooth.”
Hurricanes Captain Takes Recovery One Step at a Time
Staal described the injury as an unfortunate incident during his pregame warmup.
“Just a little old-man moment a little bit, and I just had a calf that popped on me when I was warming up,” he said.
He has not experienced any major setbacks during rehabilitation, but returning to full practice remains an important test. Staal explained that skating individually does not give him a proper idea of how his body will respond to the pace and physical demands of an NHL game.
Carolina coach Rod Brind’Amour was encouraged by his return to the ice but avoided setting a specific comeback date.
“It’s good that he’s out there practicing with us,” Brind’Amour said. “It was his first time out there, so I think everything is going well, and I can’t really give you any time frame on that, but that’s the first step.”
The captain has also watched Carolina perform well in his absence. The Hurricanes went 9-2-1 across the 12 games he missed, and Staal hopes to return without disrupting that momentum. Last season, he won the Conn Smythe Trophy after recording 12 points in 19 playoff games and helping Carolina win its first Stanley Cup since 2006.
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