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Tyler Seguin Says Rehab Going Well, Hopes to Start Light Skating at End of This Week

Tyler Seguin understands exactly how Dallas Stars fans feel right now.

The injured All-Star center has been relegated to watching his teammates struggle from afar while he nurses an MCL sprain, and he was so frustrated after Tuesday’s loss to the Winnipeg Jets that he broke his iPad.

“I kind of whipped it at the wall,” Seguin told BaDD Radio on his weekly radio show. “The wall may have taken a little more damage.

“It was right after I saw Jason Spezza break his stick after the empty netter. I kind of took my stick, which was the iPad at the time, and gave it a little message there.”

It hasn’t been a very upbeat stretch for the Stars, who have seen their playoff hopes dim to a flicker with a run of losses while Seguin’s been sidelined.

But Seguin sounded hopeful that he would be able to get back in the fold sooner, at least relatively, rather than later.

“That’s the million dollar question right now,” Seguin said when asked when he might be back. “I was kind of in a phase where I wasn’t allowed to do anything… Now we’re at the point where I’m working out pretty hard the last two days, and I’m feeling a lot better.”

Later in the interview, he mentioned he hopes to start light skating – focusing on things like edgework and getting comfortable in a knee brace – as soon as the end of this week.

He also described the injury a little bit more, calling it a “ligament tear” that was kind of between grades and usually takes 4-6 weeks to heal. That speaks to a Grade II or Grade III MCL sprain (full tears are considered Grade III sprains while partial tears at Grade II).

He added he thought Dmitry Kulikov, whose clip took him out of the lineup, might have gotten more than the four-game suspension he was handed, but added he respected the decision.

“During that play, I knew he was there,” Seguin said of the low-bridge that happened two weeks ago Friday. “I was getting ready to dodge out of the way of him coming to hit me, but because he got low, it kind of threw me off a bit and I wasn’t able to react as quick.

“I have an ex teammate on that team, Shawn Thornton… and he was texting me after the game, and he gave Kulikov the phone and he texted me apologizing, saying it was a dirty hit. But obviously it’s a quick game. I don’t hold a grudge against the guy.”

Other good injury news that came out Wednesday is the possible return of Patrick Eaves, who suffered a concussion after being hit in the head by a John Klingberg point shot. Eaves looked extremely out of it leaving the ice that night against the Florida Panthers and has a history of post-concussion problems, so it’s a great sign to see him back so soon.

According to Mike Heika, Eaves was skating (whether that was on his own or with the team was not clear) and is a possibility to play Friday. He could take Ales Hemsky’s spot in the lineup, as Hemsky missed practice and appears questionable for the game against the Avalanche.

Lindy Ruff also had his weekly radio show on The Ticket and talked about how the Stars have missed both Seguin and Hemsky, particularly when it comes to finishing opportunities in close games. Curtis McKenzie was mentioned several times as a player who has put himself in the right position and created the right opportunities but hasn’t been able to put them away.

“I think everybody knows Tyler’s ability to finish and what he brings to our club, and I think if you put some of those plays and some of those opportunities on his stick, there’s a lot better chance it goes in the back of the net,” Ruff said. “We’ve got some young guys that have been presented with some great opportunities but has just missed the net.

“Some of our young guys have just not been able to quite finish for us, and I think even when you take a Patty Eaves who was playing well and you take Tyler and you replace two veterans with two younger players who you’re hoping can help you… they’ve played well, but the finish just hasn’t been there.”

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