Three months after being knocked out of his Winnipeg Jets' Qualifying Round series against the Calgary Flames with an Achilles injury, Mark Scheifele said he's ready to return next season.
The injury occurred just minutes into Scheifele's 2020 post-season, early in Game 1 vs. the Flames on a collision with Calgary's Matthew Tkachuk.
While the Jets faithful feared the worst at the time, Scheifele said he's recovered from the injury.
"I'm 100 per cent, no question," he told NHL.com's Tim Campbell Tuesday. "Skating every day. I don't know anyone who skates more than I do. I love being on the ice. That's my No. 1 thing. I get on the ice as much as I can."
The 27-year-old finished 2019-20 with 29 goals and 44 points through 71 games before the season's pause, that after a dominant, career-best 38 goals and 84 points one year prior.
He was sidelined for nearly a month due to the injury, but told Campbell it didn't interfere with his off-season preparations for the coming season.
"I'm not a guy who likes to take much time off [in the off-season]. I think I was three weeks off the ice once I got home. I did a ton of rehab on it, lots of treatment, got it back to normal. So I think it was six days before I got home, so a month total," he told Campbell.
"I went out to test it out, to make sure it was all good on the first skate and I was unsure how that was going to feel. But as soon as I got on the ice, it felt like it clicked in almost right away. I was like, 'Hey Mark, you can do this. You're totally fine.' So there was no looking back from there."
Now focused on returning to the ice for the Jets next season, Scheifele said in August he holds no ill will towards Tkachuk for the play that ended his playoff run.
“I’m a guy that forgives pretty easily. ... For me, it’s not going to affect my day to day lifestyle. Matt’s a great hockey player and has a ton of work ethic," he said at the time.
“I have no hard feelings. Obviously, I wish it never happened and I played in the rest of that series, but there’s nothing you can do about that now. All you can do is wish everyone the best and hope that everyone stays safe and healthy. That’s kind of the only thoughts on my mind. In my mind I’m just trying to get better, trying to get my body back to 100 per cent and that’s all I can worry about.”
It appears the talented centreman is there now, and ready to help his Jets try to take the next step when the NHL returns to the ice.
