Washington forward Nicklas Backstrom returned to practice on Friday after being forced out of Thursday’s game against the Senators with an arm injury.
Backstrom, 25, was hit with a Mike Green shot and didn’t take a single shift during the final seven minutes.
“It caught him in the arm,” Green told the Washington Post following the game. “He’s all right but definitely gave him a bruise. So I hope everything’s okay with him.”
The Post reports Backstrom took part in all drills “without any hesitation” today, and should be ready for Saturday’s game in Montreal.
That news likely elicited a huge sigh of relief from the Caps.
Backstrom has been on fire as of late, often playing the role of primary set-up man as Alex Ovechkin moved atop the NHL’s goalscoring leaderboard.
The Swedish center has 44 points in 44 games this year and sits third in the NHL in assists, with 38.