Jacob Trouba injury update: Jets defenseman returns against Blackhawks

Evan Sporer

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Jacob Trouba injury update: Jets defenseman returns against Blackhawks image

The Winnipeg Jets have managed to win games this season despite missing key players due to injury, and currently sit comfortably in second place in the Central Division, with a dozen games remaining in the regular season.

While the Jets have all but locked up a playoff spot -- Winnipeg's actual magic number to clinch a postseason berth is 14 -- they returned a key piece to the lineup on Thursday.

Defenseman Jacob Trouba, who has missed the past 20 games due to an ankle injury, participated in a full morning skate on Thursday ahead of the Jets game against the Chicago Blackhawks. An official decision was made after practice, with the 24-year-old drawing back into the lineup.

"I feel good; that's going to be decided later, I guess, if I'm ready to go," Trouba said hours before he was put into head coach Paul Maurice's lineup. "We'll see how it feels later today and go from there."

Winnipeg has been without Trouba, Mark Schiefele, and Dustin Byfuglien each for long stretches this season. Yet despite that, the Jets have maintained one of the top records in the Western Conference and the NHL. Scheifele missed six weeks because of an upper-body injury, and Winnipeg managed to go 11-2-3 over that stretch. Over the past 20 without Trouba, the Jets have put together a 12-6-2 record, though they entered Thursday's contest on a three-game losing streak (0-2-1).

This most recent stretch though has also been played again without Scheifele, who sustained a new upper-body injury last Tuesday against the New York Rangers, one unrelated to the setback that kept him out six weeks.

Scheifele has returned to the ice for Winnipeg in practices in a non-contact jersey, and is targeting a return date of Sunday against the Dallas Stars. If he responds well to a full practice on Saturday, Scheifele could be back in the lineup on Sunday, Maurice said.

Paul Stastny, who was scratched from the Jets 3-1 loss against the Nashville Predators Tuesday because of a lower-body injury, was also back in the lineup against Chicago.

The Jets are also without backup goaltender Steve Mason (knee) and Michael Hutchinson (concussion) whom replaced Mason, leading to the recall of Eric Comrie.

With Winnipeg attempting to get fully healthy before the playoffs begin, Maurice has made it clear his team will exercise the utmost caution when returning players to game action.

"Everybody wants to see Jacob play here tonight. I'm a little bit sensitive, a little bit like I've had a little bit of a sunburn here; a little careful about walking out into the sunlight again," Maurice said at the morning skate. "There's no reason why [Trouba] wouldn't play, I just want to get through the morning skate and see how he is.

"If my car doesn't blow up when I start it, I'll take that as a positive. He's very interested in playing tonight. He's all signed off on by everybody."

Maurice said that Trouba has passed every test he's need to in coming back from this ankle injury, and the only remaining step is for him to return to game action.

"It's not easy watching, but we've done an excellent job filling a lot of injury holes that we've had," Trouba said. "We've managed, which is a sign of a good team and good depth."

With his return Thursday, Winnipeg got back a defenseman whom they've leaned on heavily in the past. In 50 games this season he's averaged 22:10 of ice time, second on the team behind Byfuglien. He averaged nearly 25 minutes per-game last season, during which he recorded 33 points in 60 games.

"It's obviously something you don't want to re-injure or go backwards with," Trouba said. "I wouldn't say playing it safe, but playing it smart."

Evan Sporer