After missing two games with an upper-body injury, rookie forward Justin Sourdif returned to the ice at MedStar Capitals Iceplex on Friday morning. The 23-year-old centerman wore a light blue, no-contact jersey, but was not sporting any extra protection on his helmet after taking a puck to the face against the Nashville Predators last weekend. Sourdif suffered his injury early in the second period of the Capitals' 3-2 loss to the Predators, playing just 6:16 of ice time before leaving the game.
Sourdif's ornery first period started when he received a cross-check to the head from Senators forward Drake Batherson right before Tom Wilson put the Capitals up 1-0 in the contest. Sourdif had just put a rebound attempt off of goaltender Leevi Merilainen's pads when Batherson ran him over. The 23-year-old centerman earned his seventh assist of the season on Wilson's marker.
He's a natural centerman. That's what he grew up playing. That's what he's played his whole life. He's been moved to the wing in Florida's organization for parts of his time in the American League, he can play the wing, but we think there's potentially a centerman there at the NHL level. And so I liked it a lot. I'm looking for any opportunity I can get him in the middle of the ice to see what that looks like.