WINNIPEG — Bryan Little was back practicing with the rest of his teammates on Wednesday. It was the first time he’s taken part in a full practice since suffering an upper body injury on March 4 in their game against the Ottawa Senators. Little was wearing the bright orange “do not hit” jersey while he recovers.
“It felt good being in the mix today and practicing again,” said Little. “I think the biggest thing now is getting contact and getting hit and stuff. It’s kinda hard to test that unless you’re in a game.”
Little has 24 goals and 27 assists in 65 games this season. He’s sat out the last five games and definitely won’t play Thursday against the St. Louis Blues but he’s hoping he can return Saturday night when the Jets play host to the Washington Capitals.
“The good thing is it’s gotten better every day, but it’s gotten better slower than I thought,” said Little. “You know I thought there was a good chance when it first happened I’d get to play on the road trip so it’s obviously taken about a week longer than we might have thought.”
Jets head coach Paul Maurice didn’t sound as optimistic about Little’s chances of playing this weekend.
“That’s Bryan saying he’s hoping to play Saturday,” said Maurice. “He’ll have to get through a practice of bumping and pushing back and feeling strong. And if he does that we’ll wait ’til the next day to see how he comes in and make a decision.”
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