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Forward Strome back as Hawks return to practice

Forward Dylan Strome, who has missed seven games with an ankle injury, practiced with the Blackhawks in Arizona as the team prepares to take on the Coyotes on Saturday.

Strome was injured during a 2-1 loss to Calgary on Jan. 7.

"Felt pretty good out there," he told reporters afterward. "Obviously you don't want to miss games. ... I haven't missed too many games in my hockey career. This year I've already missed 11."

The other four came when Strome was out with a concussion from Nov. 26-Dec. 2. Strome has 10 goals and 20 assists on the season.

"Obviously frustrating not being out there with the guys and helping the team win," he continued. "The guys have been playing well, so you want to get back as soon as you can. But at the same time you don't want to hurt it more."

Coach Jeremy Colliton was hopeful that Strome could practice again Friday and then play against Arizona.

The Hawks have been off since dropping a 4-3 decision to Florida on Jan. 21. They're hoping the break did them some good, but they also realize there's no easing back into things with just 31 games remaining.

"When you take yourself out of something that you've been doing every day for months and months - you kind of let your hair down ... and the wind goes out of the sails a little bit," Jonathan Toews said. "It's nice that we have (two days) to get our minds back in the grind to be ready because we know it's going to be a tough game Saturday. ...

"We don't want to miss a beat getting back at it."

Slap shots:

Jeremy Colliton said Andrew Shaw is still suffering from concussion symptoms and there is no change in his status. ... Zack Smith did not practice Thursday. ... Arizona defenseman Niklas Hjalmarsson, who missed three months with a fractured fibula, returned on Jan. 12 during a shootout loss to Pittsburgh.

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