BOSTON -- Tampa Bay Lightning captain Steven Stamkos said he won't return to the lineup until he's 100 percent.
The 27-year-old forward has been sidelined since having surgery on Nov. 17 to repair a lateral meniscus tear in his right knee. He's been practicing with the team and described his progress as "slow," but he feels he's getting closer.
"When I'm 100 percent, I'll be back," Stamkos said after the team's morning skate Thursday at TD Garden. "Obviously, you hope that's sooner than later, but I have no control of the healing that goes on in the process."
"With the situation we're in, I'd love to be in there and help the team, but I'm not going to go out there and be a liability to the team or for myself. When it's 100 percent, I'll be back."Steven Stamkos
The Lightning's season hasn't gone as planned, and the team is trying to survive the stretch run of the regular season in hopes of sneaking into the 2017 Stanley Cup playoffs. Meanwhile, Stamkos has been working on his timing and conditioning in case he's cleared to play.
"There are so many factors that come into play when you've been out as long as I have and trying to get back into the swing of things," he said. "With the situation we're in, I'd love to be in there and help the team, but I'm not going to go out there and be a liability to the team or for myself. When it's 100 percent, I'll be back."
The last two seasons have been difficult for Stamkos. With the exception of Game 7 of the Eastern Conference finals against the Pittsburgh Penguins last season, he missed the entire Stanley Cup playoffs due to a blood clot near his collarbone. He began this season by helping Team Canada win the championship at the World Cup of Hockey before he suffered the knee injury in November.
"It's been a frustrating season in that regard for sure," Stamkos said. "Obviously, with the expectation of ourselves, never mind what the media had to say about us before the year. A lot of them picked us to go deep, but we felt like we were capable.
"You can't control injuries, and that slowed us down for sure, and we didn't play to our capabilities. Then the trade deadline happens, and we see what happens there, and we go on this run probably not a lot of people thought we could do just to get even and back in the picture. Now we lose a few, and everyone's writing us off again. We'll continue to battle to the end, but it's been tough to watch, especially when we know what the potential of this team is."
The Lightning have 10 games remaining and are five points out of the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference.