Steven Stamkos has got to be setting some kind of record.
Just over a month after breaking his leg in a Nov. 11 game against the Boston Bruins, the Tampa Bay Lightning star is already back on the ice. Stamkos was walking without crutches or a boot two weeks after the injury, and the speedy recovery could mean that the Lightning won’t be without their star scorer much longer.
The team is 12-5-0 with Stamkos on the ice, and is 6-5-3 without him.
Though many thought the injury would be season-ending, on Saturday the Tampa Bay Times released video of Stamkos setting up pucks on the ice and performing stickhandling drills (albeit slowly) on his skates. The 23-year-old is eying a return to the Lightning squad in early February, which would give him time to impress the coaches of the Canadian Olympic squad ahead of the Sochi Games.
Stamkos will officially have until Feb. 11 to prove to Canada’s executives that he should stay on the roster, according to NHL.com. The decision will likely be made before then, though, with team Canada’s executive director Steve Yzerman (who is also the general manager of the Lightning) making final roster cuts before Feb. 9, when the team travels to Russia.
Check out the video below to see the superhuman Stamkos on skates just a month after his injury.
