SAN JOSE – San Jose Sharks center Nico Sturm remains out indefinitely but is slowly starting to make progress from an injury he suffered to his hand/wrist area earlier this month.
Sturm, who hasn’t played since Dec. 12 when he was injured in the third period of San Jose’s game with the Winnipeg Jets, is at least now able to tie his skates and grip his stick as he continues to keep up his conditioning with some on-ice drills after the Sharks finish practice.
Sturm said he had a procedure done on the inside of his hand last Friday to correct a problem that he’s had for about a year.
Sturm, one of the NHL’s faceoff leaders, credited Sharks head athletic trainer Ray Tufts for getting him ready to play in the past whenever he’s had issues with his hand. But with his latest injury, Sturm felt something needed to be done to fix the problem for the long-term.
“They do such a good job, but it was just at the point where there was so much inflammation in there,” Sturm told this news organization Thursday before the Sharks faced the Arizona Coyotes.
“Realistically, I probably would continue to miss games and then come back with treatment. It’s just at that point where it’s like, let’s just bite the bullet and just get it fixed.”
Sturm is wearing a brace on his right hand and is happy with how his recovery has gone so far but wouldn’t hazard a guess as to when he might be able to return. The Sharks, before Thursday, were 0-5-0 this season without Sturm in the lineup.
Sturm, before Thursday’s games, was third in the NHL with a 62.2 faceoff percentage among players who have taken at least 200 draws this year.
“I have to do my faceoffs and everything,” Sturm said. “(If) I can’t do that … I’m not going to play if I’m not 100%. I’m not going to come back and be like, ‘Oh, I’ll play the wing because I can’t play center because I can’t use my hand.’ If it’s 100%, it’s 100%. It’s tough to say when that’s going to be.”
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After Thursday, the Sharks travel to Vancouver the play the Canucks on Saturday before their three-day Christmas break begins. San Jose then closes 2023 with three more games, and has 14 more games in January before the NHL’s all-star break.
Please check back for updates to this story.
