VOORHEES, N.J. – When it was announced on Thursday that Brandon Manning would be out on a “week-to-week” basis, there was unclarity as to when an injury occurred.
Manning spoke to reporters after Friday’s practice, saying that the injury happened “last Friday in practice.” He alluded to it being his shoulder.
“I kind of felt it,” said Manning, who couldn’t recall what exactly triggered the upper-body injury.
Even with the injury, Manning has yet to miss a practice, but he says he can’t have any contact yet. He’s been trying to “do as much as I can” until he’s cleared. Manning appeared in just two preseason games with his last one being the game up in Allentown on September 28.
“I feel pretty good [now]. It’s nice to be able to skate with the team and keep my conditioning. Right now it’s just patience and giving it some time to heal.”
When asked if he thinks he’ll be ready to suit up on opening night next Friday, Manning said “I hope so.” He says he’ll make the road trip.
“That’s obviously going to be up to the coaches and doctors,” Manning added. “We’ll know a lot more next week.”
His injury, coupled with that of Scott Laughton, has the organization in a bit of a jam as they try to not only cut the roster down to the required 23 by next Tuesday, but determine how they can remain under the salary cap and whether or not to use the LTIR.
Before falling victim to an injury, Manning was having a steady camp. Head coach Dave Hakstol said earlier this week that Manning “did a good job of establishing that two-way role last year.”
“You look at the preseason games and some of the lineups of the other teams, it’s a little hard to tell [how you’ve played],” Manning said. “I feel confident this year and I feel my skating has improved much more.”
