The presence of Daniel Sedin in Los Angeles is not a sure-fire guarantee he will play for Vancouver in Game 4 of their playoff series with the Kings. First, there is the matter of Tuesday’s full practice with the Canucks and how he is feeling the following day.
Vancouver Coach Alain Vigneault spoke Monday afternoon in Santa Monica about Sedin’s status and potential availability for Wednesday’s game at Staples Center. Sedin last practiced with his teammates a week ago.
"Again, that won’t be my decision on that," Vigneault said. "That’s a medical decision. He’s been skating now for quite a few days. They feel he’s progressed real well and he’s cleared to practice with the team. So exactly what that means we’ll have a better indication here in the next couple of days."
Vigneault was asked Sedin’s possible impact.
"He’s our top scorer. Is that a good answer?" he said. "Obviously right now because Danny’s not there we’ve got a few guys playing out of roles, out of their best possible position to help out this team. That’s nothing new. You go through that in a regular season.
"Right now with the level of competition we’re up against, the situation that we’re faced with, for him to be back in our lineup would obviously be a big boost. But we don’t know. So we’ll see how everything goes the next little while."
Just the reappearance of Sedin could be an important psychological boost for the Canucks, a Stanley Cup favorite a week ago and now one game away from an early vacation.
"It's great to have him back at practice. I don't know what it means for his availability for the next game," said goalie Cory Schneider. "But I guess any sign is a good sign, so we'll take it."
--Lisa Dillman
