Stars defenseman Stephane Robidas still has a ways to go on his road to recovery from a broken leg, but he took a step forward in the process this week, hitting the ice to start skating on his own.

He skated for the first time since the injury on Monday and then was on the ice again today at the team’s practice facility in Frisco.

“It’s pretty good. It’s better than I expected, to be honest,” Robidas said of his first couple skates. “A little bit of it is pain, a lot of it is mental. You’ve got to trust it. We just did a little skating, no stop and start, no pivoting. I went forward, laps where I did c-cuts and kind of pushed on one leg. Obviously the stride is not the same, but I try to keep it as close as possible. Monday I couldn’t do any crossover to one side, but by the end of today I was able to do some. Progress.”

Small bits of progress on a lengthy road back.

“Got a ways [to go], but at the same time just to get on the ice and skate and get a feel for the ice,” said Robidas. “The first time I skated I really wasn’t sure what to expect and it went really well. Today, it went even better. That’s positive. I wasn’t sore after that. I’ve got to push it, but I’ve got to be smart at the same time where I don’t overdo it. That’s why we go Monday, Wednesday, Friday for the first two weeks just to see how I react.”

Robidas was injured in the Nov. 29 game against Chicago when his skate got stuck in a rut and he broke his leg. He had surgery the next morning. The timetable on the injury was put at four to six months, meaning the earliest possible return would be late March. Robidas remains optimistic he can return this season.

“It’s not close, but at the same time it is getting closer,” Robidas said. “I am trying to figure out that I am going to need so much practice with the team, maybe I could be there at this time and this is what is going to happen next. Your time table is getting closer and closer. I feel like I have more of a defined goal now, I have an idea of where I am going and what date and where maybe I can play. To me that is positive. And just to have a goal, at least I am training for something and that I’ll be able to be back and playing this year.”

Here come the Bruins

The Stars continue their homestand Thursday, and the Boston Bruins will be coming to town. The Stars defeated Boston, 3-2, in a shootout on Nov. 5 and there was a lot of hype surrounding that game as Tyler Seguin returned to Boston for the first time since his trade to Dallas. The hype may not be the same this around, but the Stars do expect another tough game with the Bruins, one of the top teams in the East.

“I don’t know what it’s going to be like. They’re a good team and I am going to be ready for that,” Seguin said. “They’re one of the best teams in the league. Anytime you go up against those teams they are tough nights, but every night you try to go in the same way.”

“It will be different [than the last time],” said Stars forward and former Bruin Rich Peverley. “It’s any other game, is the way I am looking at it. I’m sure they are, too. We need the win as much as they do. We’ve got to play our best because we have to continue getting points.”

Stars practice lineup

Here’s how the Stars lined up in Wednesday’s practice. Ray Whitney did not skate. Stars coach Lindy Ruff said it was a maintenance day for Whitney and that he should be ready to go Thursday vs. Boston.

Jamie Benn – Tyler Seguin – Erik Cole

Antoine Roussel – Cody Eakin – Ryan Garbutt

Shawn Horcoff – Rich Peverley – Valeri Nichushkin

Dustin Jeffrey – Vernon Fiddler – Alex Chiasson

Alex Goligoski – Trevor Daley

Brenden Dillon – Jordie Benn

Kevin Connauton – Sergei Gonchar

Kari Lehtonen

Dan Ellis





This story was not subject to the approval of the National Hockey League or Dallas Stars Hockey Club. Mark Stepneski is an independent writer whose posts on DallasStars.com reflect his own opinions and do not represent official statements from the Dallas Stars. You can follow Mark on Twitter @StarsInsideEdge.