Montreal Canadiens captain Shea Weber was back on the ice Thursday for the first time since having knee surgery in June.
The veteran defenseman skated for about 10 minutes, and coach Claude Julien called it another step in his recovery from a torn right meniscus.
When Weber had the procedure on June 19, the original timeline was for him to return to game action after five to six months — in December.
Julien said Thursday that that timeline remains unchanged.
“It’s always great to see your teammate come on the ice, especially when he’s been out as long as he has,” Julien told reporters. “Not only are they happy, they’re happy for him, mostly that’s their reaction. Nice for him to put on his skates after he’s been off them for so long.
“It’s a step in the right direction as part of his rehab. Hopefully his rehab goes really well and we’ve got a player back that’s going to be extremely helpful to our team.”