Canucks’ Joshua sheds non-contact jersey, return to lineup nearing

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The Vancouver Canucks are on a roll with four straight wins after last night’s victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins and even more help could be on the way.

Dakota Joshua has not been able to appear in the Canucks’ lineup this season as he continues to recover from a testicular cancer surgery that he underwent over the summer. While he has recently been skating with the team and has been spotted in the Vancouver dressing room after games, he had been waiting to be cleared for contact.

Well, it appears that has finally come for Joshua as he was on the ice yesterday sporting a white Canucks practice jersey, signalling that he has shed the red non-contact jersey he had been wearing recently.

Canucks Army’s Jeff Paterson broke the news first.

While this was just an optional skate with little to no contact, it’s yet another tell that Joshua is progressing well in his recovery. Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet had previously said on Friday that the 28-year-old was very close to being cleared for contact and this new development proves him right.

Joshua has become quite a fan-favourite throughout his first two seasons in Vancouver. His high-energy style of play combined with a newfound scoring prowess that crept into his game last season has been a hit with the fanbase and he has become a very important member of this team.

He is coming off a career year with the Canucks last season that saw him pot 18 goals and 32 points in 63 games. He added four more goals and eight points in 13 playoff games. Though the Canucks started the season on a bit of a rocky start, the club is now 4-1-2 on the season and is looking forward to having Joshua step back into the lineup to help keep the good times rolling.

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