"Get well, Sami. But not too soon.

If injured Canuck defenceman Sami Salo is eventually subjected to 12 or 14 full practices before he is allowed to play -- Vancouver coach Alain Vigneault cites that number using a training-camp analogy for Salo's return -- it will be the longest runway back from injury in National Hockey League history. Like any other player returning from a serious injury, Salo should be well enough to play after 1-2 weeks of full on-ice training. But the Canucks still talk about his absence in terms of several weeks.

The good reason for this, of course, is the longer the Canucks can keep Salo off the roster, the longer they avoid making a difficult salary-cap decision that could force the team to trade Kevin Bieksa or a combination of players to fit-in Salo's $3.5-million-US cap hit. With Friday's re-assignment of defenceman Ryan Parent to the Manitoba Moose after he cleared waivers, the Canucks would still need to create a hole of about $1.5 million to accommodate Salo. The fear in doing so is that Salo -- or another key blueliner -- will get hurt after the Canucks have reduced their lineup depth to make room for him.

So the team could delay Salo's return as long as possible, waiting to see if there is a serious injury to someone else that will allow Salo back in the lineup without a major roster move."