It came as somewhat of a shock. So the media surrounding Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville Wednesday made sure to ask multiple times.
Will Patrick Sharp, who has missed the last seven games with a knee injury, play Wednesday against the St. Louis Blues at the United Center?
“He skated [Wednesday] morning and felt good,” Quenneville said. “He’s going to try it in warmups and see if he can go.”
Sharp skated at the United Center Wednesday morning, while the team had the morning off after losing to the Montreal Canadiens a night earlier in overtime. It was the second time he skated since injuring his knee March 20 against the Phoenix Coyotes. He briefly skated Tuesday.
“We’re encouraged,” Quenneville said. “We talked to him and saw him on the ice. He felt good and he looked good.”
But is he rushing back too early?
Winger Troy Brouwer is day-to-day with a right shoulder injury, which he suffered Tuesday against the Canadiens when he missed a check. The Hawks are still without Dave Bolland (concussion) and their playoff lives are hanging by a thread.
“When you’re ready, you can go or you can’t go,” Quenneville said. “We leave that up to the player and the [doctors]. If there’s clearance, let’s go. … Certainly, we could use him.”
