SAN JOSE - It hasnt been a very pleasurable week for Patrick Marleau.
The Sharks forward missed the last three days of practice suffering from a vicious flu bug that included hot, cold temperatures, a lot of body aches and just really weak, he said.
Marleau was back on the ice with his teammates on Thursday at HP Pavilion, skating with Joe Thornton and Joe Pavelski. Hell be in the lineup on Friday when the Sharks play their first road game against Anaheim.
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Luckily it came at this time, and hopefully it will just get better tomorrow, he said, referring to the teams five complete days off between its first and second games.
Todd McLellan was content to have Marleau back.
Any time you come off a flu for a few days you dont feel very good. Youre not very comfortable on the ice, but it was important for him to skate today and get some fluids and food back into him, said the coach. Well have to watch his energy level over the next couple of days, but it was exciting to see him back on the ice with his team.
Thats the good news.
San Jose Sharks
The bad news is that Martin Havlat will still not be able to make his Sharks debut on Friday. Havlat took some line rushes with Logan Couture and Ryane Clowe on Thursday, but it appears that Tommy Wingels will remain on the wing with Havlat still recovering from left shoulder surgery.
Antti Niemis status is still unclear, although its looking more and more like Niemi is nearing a return. He was the first goalie off of the ice on Thursday, and McLellan expects to know by the afternoon which goaltender will start against the Ducks at the Honda Center.