Paul Martin expects to play Saturday
Some good news on the injury front.
San Jose has (unsurprisingly) struggled without Logan Couture and Paul Martin in the lineup. While Couture's return is still weeks away, it appears the Sharks are about to get their veteran defender back.
Martin participated in the morning skate Thursday but wasn't able to go against the Kings. It sounds like that won't be the case against the Hurricanes tomorrow if all goes well.
Nothing certain, but Paul Martin says: "My plan would be to play tomorrow." Experienced no setbacks after yesterday’s morning skate
— Kevin Kurz (@KKurzCSN) October 23, 2015 He'll likely slot back in with Brent Burns, which means the not-so-great Burns-Brenden Dillon pairing can mercifully be put to bed.
In other pseudo-injury related news, Joe Thornton is sticking to the "skate issue" story from last night. He did pass a concussion test, though it's still a bit concerning he was allowed back on the ice so quickly.
Thornton says issue in first last night was skate blade…me thinks he was prepared to answer that…admitted he was tested for concussion
— Kevin Kurz (@KKurzCSN) October 23, 2015 An NHL player trying to cover up an injury, whether to the "lower body," "middle body" or "head bucket" is no surprise. Hopefully Thornton is okay. He certainly played well enough after returning last night.