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Washington Capitals bench boss Peter Laviolette was a guest on 106.7 The Fan on Monday morning. During the segment, Laviolette was asked about the status of Justin Schultz, who took a puck to the face in the third period of Thursday nights game against the Islanders.

“I saw him that night, when he was getting worked on and that was tough. There was some damage done there. He said he was alright, he was fine, he had to get some work done. I saw him yesterday for the first time since it actually happened and surprisingly I thought he looked good. He could have looked a lot worse, it could have been completely swelled up, and just a bloody mess. Our docs did a tremulous job at taking care of him, and putting him back together. Right now he’s day to day. You’ll know when he starts to edge towards coming back, you’ll see him out on the ice probably by himself, and then you’ll see him in some reps with the team. And then he’ll probably be getting close at that point, I don’t have an exact date.”

Laviolette has been pleased with Schultz’s play, particularly in his last three or four games.

”I thought he was just really solid for us, a guy that was playing really well, especially the last three or four games, the way he jumps into the play, the way he looks to add offense and his defense was excellent too. The numbers on both ends of the ice were really good, so we’re gonna miss him. He was playing terrific for us, and hopefully it’s not anything that’s too too long.”

The Capitals return to the ice tonight when they host the Boston Bruins at Capital One Arena in the second game of their two-game set. Puck drop is set for 7:07 p.m.

By Jon Sorensen