TAMPA -- It’s not a concussion.
But other than ruling that possibility out, Blackhawks forward Bryan Bickell isn’t quite sure what’s been ailing him.
“I don’t know exactly what it is,” he said today. “It’s something that comes and goes. It could come after I’m done talking to you. I don’t know.”
Bickell was forced to miss Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final with what the club called an “upper-body” injury. He also played just 4:22 in Game 7 of the Western Conference Final.
“We did all those concussion tests and everything was clear,” he said. “It’s just a frustrating thing to come up this time of year.”
Bickell practiced today and hopes to play tomorrow; however, his status remains unclear, whether he’s healthy or not.
That’s because Kris Versteeg drew into the lineup for Bickell on Wednesday and impressed coach Joel Quenneville.
“I liked his game,” Quenneville said. “He had good pace to his game. Good energy.”
Bickell skated in Marcus Kruger’s spot on the fourth line in practice today. Quenneville said Kruger was resting.