Juuso Valimaki’s recovery is ‘ahead of schedule’

The Calgary Flames are getting healthy. Sam Bennett returned on Tuesday night. Austin Czarnik was waived on Wednesday in order to get him some AHL time. Flames general manager Brad Treliving updated the media on some roster moves on Wednesday morning and he was asked about the last remaining injured Flame: prospect Juuso Valimaki.

Is there a big update? Not really, as Treliving wasn’t able to say anything terribly definitive.

Valimaki suffered a torn ACL in mid August and had knee surgery at the end of August. The general recovery span for such an injury is roughly six to nine months. Six months from surgery would be the end of February, nine would be the end of May. Based on Treliving’s comments it’s unclear if “ahead of schedule” means something towards the near end of that spectrum or something different altogether.

It’s not unreasonable to expect that when something significant happens, like Valimaki begins skating on his own, that somebody like our pal Pat Steinberg will have some kind of news of that ilk.

Treliving added that Valimaki traveled on the recent Colorado/Arizona road trip to give him a mental break from rehab, while he’s already back in Finland for Christmas with his family for another break.

“It’s going well in the rehab,” sad Treliving. “But it takes time.”