Chicago Blackhawks goaltender Corey Crawford skated for the first time Thursday in Chicago since he underwent an appendectomy Dec. 3 in Philadelphia, coach Joel Quenneville told reporters Thursday in Brooklyn.
At the time of the appendectomy, Crawford was given a two-to-three week timetable for recovery which would slate is return, at the earliest, for Dec. 18 against San Jose at home.
The Hawks won’t rush Crawford back into the net until he’s fully healed, similar to how they treated Jonathan Toews’ back injury which sidelined him for nine games.
“You want to make sure you’re more than ready when you come back, especially with goalies,” Quenneville told the Chicago Tribune. “They want to come back and play as early as possible, but at the same I think they know their body when they’re 100 percent and getting cleared medically is part of that as well.”
Scott Darling has done more than just keep the Hawks above water. Darling has allowed just three goals in his last four outings as the Hawks have gone 3-0-1 in that stretch.