Lightning's Steven Stamkos: Skates with mates for first time; may be back this season

Stamkos (knee) joined an optional skate Monday morning and may play this season, reports Joe Smith of the Tampa Tribune.

It was Stamkos' first time back on the ice with teammates. He did two-on-one drills, took one-timers and looked comfortable skating. "Everything about his rehab is moving along very well," general manager Steve Yzerman said. "There's no complications. He feels good. It's about allowing the injury to heal and getting his conditioning back and all that takes time. I don't have an exact timetable [for his return]." Mid-March is the four-month point in his rehab; the original timeline was four-to-six months.