Derick Brassard plans to use preseason to ‘re-energize himself’ after illness

Before training camp kicked off, forward Derick Brassard was poised and ready for his comeback from injury that affected him in all the way back in the 2018 playoffs. He had every intention of starting off the new season strong and on the right foot, until a minor infection in his chest sidelined him for what will turn out to be a week.

“I had a little setback last week,” Brassard said of his illness. “I was sick for a few days. I had bad fevers and chills. It was a rough couple of days, but now I’m past it, and I (plan to) come back to where I was before. I feel pretty good. It was good to get a full practice with the entire team.”

Brassard went on to mention how much work he put in over the summer to return to being 100-percent, and to come back to camp after all that just to get sick in the manner he did was a bit frustrating given the timing. He missed all of the Penguins’ scrimmages in camp and has only been skating on his own lately to nurse the last remnants of his illness, but he’s fully expecting to be back and healthy before the regular season begins after losing those initial five days.

“My first game is going to be a preseason game, and I’m going to have to try my best and take one game at a time,” Brassard said. “It’s just (my) lungs with what I had. “I feel good out there, I just get tired a little quick. (Thursday), we have the day off, and I think I’m going to try to re-energize as much as I can. I think I’m going to play one of those preseason games this weekend.”

Brassard lamented on the fact that he wasn’t healthy enough to get in on the team’s scrimmages, but was hopeful knowing that he’ll have three full games to use to his advantage to get back into hockey shape. He was also missing Mike Sullivan’s guidance, as his head coach had to take a leave absence due to his father’s passing. Brassard was ill and away from the team before Sullivan left, and since he got well, he has yet to go over strategy with Sullivan to start figuring out a plan for his potential hybrid position. As we’re all mostly aware, Brassard will likely slot in as both a winger and a center in the lineup full of forward depth this season.

With all that being said, it’s evident he has no doubt he’ll be ready to go when the Capitals come to town October 4.