Casey Mittelstadt won't play Thursday night when the Buffalo Sabres host the Columbus Blue Jackets and probably for some games after that as well. For the third time this season, he's out of the lineup trying to overcome the upper-body injury that's dogged him since it cropped up midway through the season opener in October.
"You have to say, 'OK, what exactly is going on? Where have the injuries occurred? How have they occurred?' ... Those are the type of questions that I ask, and I've been thinking in my head," Adams said.
Mittelstadt had surgery in December, missed more than a month and couldn't get through three games after he returned without sitting out some more.
Wednesday's practice in KeyBank Center, his first appearance since leaving the Jan. 30 game in Colorado after one period, was a good day for him. He needs a few more like it.
"It was a bigger level operation I guess that I had, so there's going to be some complications and more than anything just working through it," Mittestadt said. "You wake up, keep going and confidence is going to get back to where it needs to be. When it is, I'm going to be ready to go."
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"I was encouraged," said coach Don Granato. "He looked better, a little better jump certainly then when he left."
Mittelstadt played just 4 minutes, 59 seconds of the loss to the Avalanche before pulling himself from the game. He did not play in the Feb. 1 loss at Vegas, the club's final game before the All-Star break, and did not practice Tuesday.
"I think it's a compilation of things," he said. "I'm trying to speed up the ice and just not moving the way I want to. There comes a point where I think, 'I'm not helping myself out there and not helping the team.'"
Buffalo owns a 14-24-7 record, 20 points out of a playoff spot, ahead of its matchup Thursday night against the Columbus Blue Jackets in KeyBank Center.
Mittelstadt said the biggest challenge continues to be staying patient as he works his way back into the lineup.
"Attack every day and just keep trying to get better every day, even if it's just a little bit one day," he said. "There's definitely going to be peaks and valleys and I've talked about that a lot with the trainers and the medical staff. I think that's the hardest part for me, I'm not a very patient person, any way shape or form. But just keep coming to the rink. It's nice to be able to skate with the guys and be around the team and feel like you're a part of it a little more."
There is no timetable for Mittelstadt's return. The Sabres list him as week to week, so he's expected to be out at least the next three games.
Hinostroza absent
Winger Vinnie Hinostroza, who tried working on a lower-body injury in practice Tuesday but left early, was not on the ice Wednesday.
"There was a stop that he made in practice, it didn't feel too good. But it didn't worsen," Granato said. "He just felt the pain and wanted to make certain. So we followed up today to see if anything was worse and to get a better look at it. Nothing is worse and he feels the same."
Jeff Skinner left Wednesday's practice for a few minutes due to a cut in the mouth but returned to finish drills.
Laine's status uncertain
The Blue Jackets also practiced Wednesday in KeyBank Center and a big development was red-hot winger Patrik Laine leaving the ice early during the afternoon workout.
Coach Brad Larsen told Columbus reporters Laine was dealing with some undisclosed "irritation” and will be reassessed Thursday.
Laine is on a franchise-record run of three consecutive multigoal games, including two goals and three points in Tuesday's 5-4 win in Washington. He has six goals and three assists in the last four games.
Laine, taken second overall by Winnipeg in the 2016 draft here, has 12 goals and 24 points in 25 games this season.
Overtime advantage
The Blue Jackets won the teams' previous meeting here, 7-4, on Nov. 22. They didn't need to work overtime that night and would have a big advantage if they do Thursday.
That's because Columbus leads the NHL in win percentage for overtime/shootouts at .875 (7-0-1). Meanwhile, the Sabres are 30th at .300 (3-7).
Buffalo is second from the bottom in OT decisions at 1-6 and is 2-1 in shootouts. Columbus is one of three teams unbeaten in OT (4-0) and is 3-1 in shootouts.
