Perhaps the best news coming out of Marc Staal's much-anticipated return to the lineup Monday from a concussion was how he felt the following day, and how he felt after getting back on the ice to practice with his teammates again on Wednesday. "My head is clear," Staal reported on Wednesday. "My body kind of feels like the first day of training camp, a little sore, but it feels good to have that feeling again, to be honest." After missing the first 36 games of the season, Staal surprised many by making his 2011-12 debut in Monday's Winter Classic. "I thought I could just weasel my way back in and it wouldn't be such a big deal because it was such a big spectacle to begin with," said Staal, who logged nearly 13 minutes of ice time against the Flyers Monday. With one game behind him, Staal will focus on inproving his endurance, strength, and conditioning, and start building back his minutes of ice-time. "I'll just keep talking with the coaches, and I'm sure for (Thursday, against the Panthers) it will be the same game plan as Monday and work my way into it and eventually get my minutes up as I start feeling good again," explained the Blueshirts alternate captain. Share your thoughts on Staal's return, as well as his course of action moving forward, below.
