Heads likely turned around the NHL on Wednesday with news that two of the league’s most rambunctious players -- Cal Clutterbuck and Jordin Tootoo -- have been medically cleared to return to action.
Clutterbuck, 25, is ready to play after missing the first three games of the season with a leg laceration suffered during the preseason. Original estimates suggested he’d miss 4-6 weeks, but the Isles winger will be ready to go when his team takes on the defending Cup champion Blackhawks on Friday.
Tootoo, 30, has been sidelined since Sept. 19 with a shoulder injury and missed Detroit’s first three games of the season as a result. Though he’s been medically cleared, there’s no telling when he’s actually get back in the lineup -- he was a healthy scratch at times last season and Detroit has a glut of forwards currently available for selection.
Despite this, Tootoo is excited at the prospect of getting back in.
“I’m in the right state to get back at ‘er,” he told the Red Wings website. “It’s about making sure every day I come to the rink I’m ready mentally and physically.”