Hawks make roster transactions, activate Khaira from IR originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
The Blackhawks have activated Jujhar Khaira from injured reserve, the team announced Thursday. This paves the way for the 27-year-old forward to return for Chicago's next game on Saturday vs. Nashville.
Khaira hasn't played since Dec. 7 when he was stretchered off the ice after taking a high hit from New York Rangers defenseman Jacob Trouba. He practiced with the team all three days this week and skated on the fourth line with Ryan Carpenter and MacKenzie Entwistle.
"He's coming along well," interim coach Derek King said after Thursday's practice. "He looks good out there. I have to talk with our trainer to make sure he is definitely cleared for games. I know there's a little bit of contact today, but it's not like a hockey game, a real game. I just got to make sure, for his benefit, that he's cleared to play and he feels comfortable getting back on the ice in a game."
The Blackhawks also activated Henrik Borgstrom from injured reserve after missing the last four games with a non-COVID-19-related illness. The last game he played in was Dec. 9 in Montreal, where he scored a goal while centering a line with Alex DeBrincat and Patrick Kane.
And finally, forward Josiah Slavin and defenseman Alec Regula joined forward Brett Connolly and goaltender Arvid Soderblom on Chicago's taxi squad, upping the total to four players. The maximum a team can carry is six.
The Rockford IceHogs had their games on Friday and Saturday postponed for COVID-19-related reasons, so this allows players like Regula, Slavin and Soderblom to practice with the Blackhawks for the time being.
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